


Wings of the West

by JaegerBombs



Series: Tales of the West [1]
Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Bounty Hunters, Alternate Universe - Western, Bandits & Outlaws, Established Mikasa Ackerman/Levi, Eventual Smut, F/M, M/M, Multi, POV Multiple, Polyamory, Slow Build Levi/Eren Yeager, Slow Build Mikasa Ackerman/Eren Yeager
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-06-05
Updated: 2018-05-14
Packaged: 2018-07-10 06:58:16
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 26,236
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6971833
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JaegerBombs/pseuds/JaegerBombs
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Eren Yeager is a young man who seeks revenge for the death of his family. On his journey, he meets a renowned and seasoned bounty hunter who agrees to take him under his wing and has several encounters with a self-proclaimed vigilante who's created quite the reputation for herself in The West. The three of them, with a shared goal to take down the most dangerous outlaw in the region, forge a strong bond that becomes an unshakable force.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Greenhorn

**Author's Note:**

> Third time is a charm right?
> 
> This universe idea has manifested itself in my mind in several different ways over the last 2-3 years. I think I finally found the ground that I feel the most comfortable with and so, I'm happy to say that I really intend to see this story through to completion. The original idea for the story was to be an Eren/Levi one but I've ultimately decided to go with an Eren/Levi/Mikasa dynamic here. There will be a lot of focus on the pairings that make up the relationship (EreMika, EreRi and RivaMika), melding them together by the end of the story. This fic will not present competitive love triangle dynamics.
> 
> Minor side pairings include Ymir/Historia, Armin/Annie and Erwin/Hange.  
> You can find me at [erensjaegerbombs](http://erensjaegerbombs.tumblr.com) (my main) or [theackrmen](http://theackrmen.tumblr.com) (writing and insp. blog) on tumblr.  
> The tag for this fic is **fic: wotw**  
>  tw for mentions of sex slavery in the fic (not depicted, but a topic of conversation)
> 
> M rating may eventually turn into an E rating.
> 
> Huge thank you to [rosesintea](http://rosesintea.tumblr.com) for offering to beta for me!

His mother’s smile is one of the few things that kept him going. It fueled the fire, the rage that burned within him. Wrapped around his neck he wore a red bandana that his mother made for him not long before her death. It covered up a key tied by a string that his dad had given him when Eren expressed interest in his practice. He clung to these mementos of his parents as reminders not to be weak and not to give up. There was no home for him to return to, no family for him to treasure. Now, he was just a young man fueled by his desire to put an end to the life of the man who destroyed everything he loved.

For four years, Eren Yeager wandered around the vast space of The West with his horse, Clyde, in search of a man who was infamously known as the Warrior Chief. He searched in all directions, top to bottom, looking for any and all leads possible. But the Warrior Chief was an elusive man. Whenever Eren found a lead, it diminished as soon as it appeared, and he was back at square one again.

As he searched, he scooped up small fry bandits and wrongdoers and handed them over to the law for a price. They were never major outlaws, but he’d earn some silver here, a couple gold coins there. It kept leather on his back, bullets in his pistol and bread in his belly. Ultimately, the prize Eren wanted the most was the gratification of knowing that he put an end to the Warrior Chief. Only then would he be able to resume his life the way he had planned it with no regrets.

He last heard wind of the Warrior Chief being sighted around the town of Stohess. It was positioned up north from his current location just outside of Trost. He figured it would take a few days to get there, and had low hopes that the man would still be around by the time he arrived. Such was always the case when he was on the hunt. Still, he had to at least try.

Unfortunately, today Eren found himself in a bit of a predicament just outside of town.

“Your horse. Get off of it and hand it over.”

He was staring down the barrel of a rifle, surrounded by a gang of rowdy outlaws. They were chaotic and uncalculated in their movements, wild and murderous for sport; they were nothing more than rabid dogs. Guys like these operated on a far lower level than the likes of the man he seeks, but it was a good opportunity to sharpen his skills for the real deal.

“You guys look like you would kill me even if I give you what you want,” Eren said, a faint smirk on his face.

“Maybe,” the gruff man holding the gun in front of him replied. “So why don’t you just surrender and make it easier on us?”

He looked around. _One, two, three…_ Four men surrounded him. Eren knew that he didn’t have the upper hand here but he has also been in worse situations and got out of them okay. He chuckled lightly as he reached beneath his duster to grab his pistol. “Sorry, but I ain’t no dog and I ain’t rolling over for anyone.”

Swiftly, Eren flung his arm out from under the duster and knocked the rifle out of the man’s hands. He aimed a shot for his upper arm and then spurred his horse to make for their escape. Turning to look behind him, the watched as the other men in the gang started firing shots in his direction. Eren cocked his pistol and shot back, managing to hit one of the other men, knocking him off of his horse. But Eren’s escape was short-lived when a shot fired into his side, forcing him to tumble down to the ground. Breathing in in the dry air and grabbing at his bloody side with his free hand, he stumbled behind a tree for cover. Readying his pistol, he prepared to defend himself from the ground.

Two gunshots rang out and the other two men were forced from their steeds, but the shots didn’t come from his barrel. He looked around, trying to find the culprit as he clutched painfully onto his side, trying to stop himself from bleeding too much. The men who fell victim to the gunshots were completely immobilized and Eren had safely assumed they were dead. Two more gunshots took the lives of the remaining men. Eren became more worried for his safety more than he was grateful for the help, but it was hard to focus on much when the sharp, burning pain coming from his side forced itself to the forefront of his mind.

His vision was blurry and he couldn’t make out a face, but he could see a man sporting a black hat and a black trench coat approaching the scene on his horse. The man hopped down to the ground and began to walk swiftly toward him. Concerned about the man’s intentions, he wasn’t sure if he should try to get away and hide or not, but the gunshot wound in his side wasn’t going to allow him much movement anyway.

“What’s your name?” The man asked as he placed his pistol back into its sling, kneeling down to meet Eren at eye level.

Eren flicked his eyes up to try and get a better look at the man. Vision still blurry from the blood loss, he couldn’t make out much other than the black hair and soft features of the man’s face. Cocking his pistol and readying himself, he replied, “It’s Eren. Who are you? What do you want?”

“The name is Levi,” the man answered. “I don’t want anything from you, I’m just here to do a job.” He pulled out a piece of cloth from his trench coat and removed Eren’s hand from the wound, replacing it with the fabric. “Put that gun away. We need to get you to a doctor.”

Levi… Eren recognized that name from somewhere, but he couldn’t put his finger on it right then. Having no need to protest against seeing a doctor, he allowed the stranger to take his gun away, pick him up and help him get back onto Clyde. Eren leaned forward to rest his head on the horse’s neck.

“We’re headed to Trost. What kind of unskilled idiot takes on a bunch of bandits by himself?” Levi asked as the horses began to walk. “That’s a good way to get killed.”

Eren sighed, “It’s not like I was trying to run into any.” He was too tired to defend himself from the insult. Besides, it wasn’t a lie. It’s not like he went out looking to get into trouble. Well, at least not right at the moment.  “You’re out here all alone too, you know,” he chose to point out.

“I ain’t some ignorant greenhorn. I know damn well what I’m doing,” Levi deadpanned.

“What’s that supposed to mean? You didn’t see me gun two of those guys down?” Eren spit as he wrapped his arms around Clyde’s neck rather than clutching at his side. He definitely wasn’t feeling any better like this. In fact, he was starting to white out.

“You didn’t kill them,” Levi replied. “They were about to kill you.”

“I was getting around to it,” Eren grumbled. Levi hummed in acknowledgement.

“Get some rest,” he said simply.

“Yeah, sure…” Eren said, trailing off as he closed his eyes. He was rendered unconscious for the rest of the trip.

 

* * *

 

Eren woke up inside of a gloomy, musky doctor’s office. Three tiny windows and a dim lantern illuminated the small building. Shelves covered the walls with jars full of medicine and cups holding various medical items like clamps and scalpels. Eren was lucky enough that he was still unconscious as the bullet was pulled from his body, but the stitches weren’t exactly soothing to the touch. He grimaced as he brushed his fingers against the tender wound.

“You’re lucky that was just a graze, son.” He looked over to his left to find the doctor cleaning his medical tools. The man was unremarkable, with a mustache and cropped brown hair, like most men wore it those days. “None of your organs were hit.”

Eren sat up, looked around the room and saw Levi sitting on a bench near his table. Now that his vision was clearer, he was able to see the man’s raven hair shaped in an undercut, his fringe draping over his sullen, steel grey eyes. His lips were pouty against his pale, shaven face. With his trench coat off, Eren could see through his blue button up shirt and the black vest he wore over it that he was a muscular man.

“Well, looks like you’re all patched up now,” Levi said as he stood up, putting the long garment back on and dusting off his hat. Eren didn’t notice until now that the man was rather short. “I’ll be taking my leave.”

“Wait,” Eren insisted before Levi could start heading out the door. “You said you went out to do a job. You’re a bounty hunter, right?”

“What of it?” Levi asked with a frown, eyeing the door in a small gesture that indicated he was ready to leave.

“You’re Levi Ackerman,” Eren stated, eyes widening in awe. “You’ve brought to justice some of the deadliest outlaws in the land. You have the fastest trigger finger in all of the west. You’ve taken on gangs of dangerous men at once without taking on so much as a scratch! You—”

“ _What of it?_ ” Levi repeated, cutting Eren off with a hint of irritation in his voice.

“Please, let me come with you,” Eren said without hesitation. “There’s so much I can learn from you.” Levi was a man that Eren had heard about back before the incident that changed his life. But back then, the man was only at his roots and not nearly as well-known as he is today. Still, through Eren’s travels he only heard increasingly more good about Levi, and he was someone that Eren aspired to be like one day. With the man right in front of him, Eren wasn’t about to waste the opportunity to try and learn a thing or two from him.

But instead of accepting Eren’s request, Levi shook his head and started heading out through the swing doors. “Sorry, I don’t have time to waste teaching some greenhorn how to wrangle up bad guys.”

Eren tried to get up to chase after him, but he was stopped as the doctor held him back, pressing his palm against his chest. “Kid, you need rest.”

“I’ll get my rest,” Eren said as he pushed the man’s hand out of the way. “Please, I may never get this opportunity again.” He stood up from the table, scooped up his effects, paid the doctor a few silver coins and left as fast as he could to catch up to the famous bounty hunter. “Thank you for stitching me up!” He shouted as he passed through the swing doors, sliding his duster back on over his clothes.

Levi had just mounted his horse when Eren spotted him. Despite the sharp pain shooting up his side, he ran to get as close as possible before the man could take off.

“Please, Levi,” Eren begged, clasping his hands together. “At least let me go with you to the sheriff’s office. That’s where you’re headed to next, right? To get your reward?”

“If you think you’re getting a cut of my reward, I’ve got bad news for you,” Levi said suspiciously as he heeled his steed.

“I don’t want any money,” Eren grit out in desperation. He mounted his horse, despite the pain. “Just hear me out.”

“Let’s go, Black Dynamite.” Levi said as he spurred his horse. Eren was quick to follow suit and Levi was just as quick to notice that he was right on his tail, sighed, and moved back to ride parallel to him. “Fine, I’m listening.”

“Well,” Eren began to speak over the slow clattering of the animals’ hooves on the ground. “I’m trying to find an outlaw that you probably know of. He goes by the Warrior Chief.”

“I’m familiar with him.” Levi’s voice was disinterested. “Deadliest man in all the West.” He turned to face Eren and looked him over. “What’s your business with someone like that?”

With conviction in his voice, Eren replied, “I want to see to it personally that he no longer exists in this world.”

Levi chuckled, “Pretty ambitious there, huh?”

“It’s not a joke, sir,” said Eren. He paused for a moment, clutching the fabric of his bandana, his mother’s smile flashing across his mind. “That man is responsible for the deaths of my parents. I can’t forgive that.”

“Ah,” Levi breathed as he faced forward again. “Should have mentioned that before.”

“I need to sharpen my skills if I’m ever going to take him on and live to tell the tale,” said Eren. “If I learned how to shoot and fight like you, then I’d be able to take care of him without a problem.”

“No,” Levi said. “Even I would barely be a match for the guy. Someone like you has no business trying to go after him.”

“But—!”

“He is very dangerous,” Levi interrupted. His tone was stern. “He is a man with a lot of blood on his hands, a lot of gold in his pocket and a lot of influence in ways you wouldn’t even begin to comprehend. He wasn’t given his grandiose nickname over nothing.”

Eren fell silent upon hearing Levi’s words, disappointed but not entirely surprised. Levi assumed he wouldn’t be good enough to face down the Warrior Chief, but Eren wasn’t about to give up. He just had to try from another angle.

“Do you work with anyone else, or do you just do everything alone?” He asked.              

“I’ve accepted help when I need it, but I prefer to work alone,” answered Levi. “More money that way, y’know?” Eren understood, although he felt let down about it. Perhaps any amount of begging wouldn’t be enough to convince the guy to take him on as a pupil or a partner. Still, he was going to try until he was blue in the face.

“We don’t have to share any of the cuts. I can catch my own bad guys and use that to pay for my needs,” he suggested.

“I’ve already told you no,” Levi said, slowing his horse down as they were nearing the sheriff’s office. “You should let this ambition of yours go and return home. The Warrior Chief would serve you on a platter within five minutes of running into him. It’s not worth it if you value your life.”

“Levi, please,” Eren said, giving his begging one more shot. “I don’t think I’ll ever sleep well until I know that man is good and dead. I can’t go back to the life I had. Not until I finish this. Until I finish him.” He clenched his fists around the leather of his reins and looked over to Levi with fire in his eyes. “He’s a dangerous animal that needs to be put down. He has no business existing in this world.”

Levi observed Eren’s determined expression and sighed before he stopped his steed. “We’re here. You just wait outside for a minute. I need to let the sheriff know the job is done.” He dismounted and walked into the sheriff’s office.

Eren slid down from his horse and waited patiently, watching the passersby in town. He observed the drunk men walking in and out of the saloon across the street, some with a girl slung to their arm. Business owners were sweeping the outside of their shops, getting ready to close down for the night. The dusk was quickly consuming the sky and a cool, relieving breath of wind was coming in from the north. It felt soothing to the skin after a hot summer day.

He looked over the wanted posters on the outside of the sheriff’s office to see who he should keep his eyes out for. One poster stood out to him. He studied the hand drawn picture of a beautiful woman’s face, soft Asian features framed with long, black hair. Eren knew that drawings of outlaws were very subjective, but the woman on this poster looked very beautiful. He was curious about what her transgressions were, but the reward for her capture, dead or alive, was five hundred dollars. It was a very high price, so Eren checked the details of the poster over.

_… Moonlight Rider?_

“Hmph. That flyer doesn’t do her any justice.”

Eren heard Levi speak and snapped out of his daze. He turned to face the man and pointed his thumb in the direction of the drawing. “Do you know her?” He asked.

“I’m familiar with her,” Levi answered as he crossed his arms, leaning over to put his weight against the building. “Most civilians love her, but certain lawmen want her head in a noose. There’s not much else you need to know right now.”

Curious, Eren inquired about the hefty price over her head. “Why is the reward so high? Certainly she can’t be capable of much.”

“You’re kidding, right? She’s been notorious for years,” Levi said, a slight look of disbelief on his face. “You shouldn’t underestimate her just because of her gender.”

“Isn’t she someone you’d want to go after?” Eren asked. “It’s a nice reward…”

Levi shrugged his shoulders, dismissing the idea. “I have no interest in getting her put behind bars.”

There was a pause as Eren contemplated Levi’s reply, but his thoughts were quickly interrupted as he caught the man flipping him a silver coin. Eren caught the coin and asked, “What’s this for?”

“A cheap hotel room for the night,” said Levi as he mounted back onto his horse, petting the mane as he settled his weight. “I’m not about to share one with you, and seeing how inept you are at taking down a lowly bandit in the middle of the day, I’ll bet you aren’t wallowing in riches right now.”

“Huh?” Eren asked, confused as he looked at the coin in his hand, the insult seemingly going over his head.

“Don’t be dense. If I have to spell everything out for you, I’ll drop you like a rock and you can figure out how to improve your skills on your own,” Levi said.

“Does this mean you’re going to let me stick with you for a while?” Eren asked, his bright green eyes lighting up in the dim glow of the dusk. Levi didn’t give a proper response, but instead nudged his head to follow and began to head in the direction of the nearest hotel. Eren took that as a yes, hopped back onto his horse and followed. They rode through a narrow part of town with small shops and saloons on either side. The town’s hotel wasn’t too far from the sheriff’s office.

“A few things,” Levi started as Eren lined up next to him. “First, I’d prefer it if you didn’t get in my way. If I’m going in for an arrest or a kill, you let me do it. I don’t know where you stand exactly or what you believe in, but I don’t sit on a moral high ground when it comes to doing my job. Just don’t get any more involved than you have to be. Watch me, observe me, and remember what you see. But you hunt down your own bad eggs, I’ll get my own.”

Eren listened carefully.

“Second, when I say that I want to be alone, I mean it,” Levi continued. “I like to have my private life. I don’t need you to be following me into any dark alleys or some shit.”

“Why would you be hanging out in dark alleys?” Eren asked, genuinely curious about Levi’s statement.

“Don’t worry about it,” Levi replied. “Lastly, I only take on very specific jobs and I only take them from one person. I can give you some pointers here and there if you want to go after any random man on a flyer, but I don’t get involved in anything that isn’t a job from Erwin.”

“Erwin?”

“He’s the sheriff I’m contracted with,” Levi elaborated. “Anyway, are those terms going to work for you?”

“I can agree to all of that,” Eren said after some thought. So far, the man wasn’t exactly what Eren was hoping for, but he was kind enough to allow Eren to learn from him. He came off kind of grumpy and maybe even a little demanding, but this was a great opportunity and Eren wasn’t about to turn his nose up to it. 

“Okay,” Levi replied simply. “I have some business I need to attend to up in the town of Mitras. We’ll head out once the dawn breaks.”

“Sure,” Eren agreed, whimsically sliding his silver coin between his fingers. “Hey, Levi,” he tossed the coin back to him, smirking. “I can cover my own boarding. You shouldn’t underestimate me.”

Levi put the coin into his left breast pocket and let a faint smile creep onto his face as he turned to look forward. “Yeah… We’ll see about that, greenhorn.”


	2. First Impressions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren and Levi head to Mitras to meet up with Erwin. Eren's night doesn't end well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you again [rosesintea](http://rosesintea.tumblr.com) for being a beta for me. :)

Levi never slept well due to a mild case of insomnia and his bad habit of falling asleep in chairs resulted in painful kinks left in his body, especially his neck. As dawn broke, he knew this day was no different. He rolled his head to loosen the joints in his neck and massaged the ache on its left side. Looking into the mirror of his room, he buckled his gun holster and tucked his pistol inside. He buttoned up his shirt enough to cover all but his collar bones, tucked it in and slipped his black vest on over the garment.

He made a mental note that bathing would be a top priority once he reached Mitras.

He wasn’t quite sure what to think of Eren, yet. The boy was strange but there was a fire burning within him that Levi felt he couldn’t ignore in good conscience. It reminded him of how he was at a younger age, back when he had a partner in crime and the rules never applied to them.

It had been a while since he last saw his old partner, and he often fell into states of melancholy thinking about her. He was certain that Eren would make for a good distraction. At least, this would be true until the next time he saw her. And he knew that he would eventually see her again.

He wondered if they would argue again this time or if they would make love instead. One of those two things were always inevitable with them these days. If he could have his way, it would always be the latter.

Shaking his head in an attempt to erase his thoughts, grabbed his trench coat and hat from the coat hanger and put them on, checking over the room once more to make sure he had all of his possessions. He patted his pockets and, once he confirmed that everything was with him, made his way out the door.

As he walked down the hallway, he stopped by the room that Eren had stayed in for the night and knocked on the door.

“Hey, Eren, you’re awake right?”

There was no reply and the door handle was unlocked. Levi opened the door assuming that he was going to find the brunet still passed out on his bed. Instead, he walked into a room that was unoccupied, so he decided to make his way downstairs where the saloon was. He was surprised to find Eren down there already sitting at the counter with a mug in his hand, having what looked like a cheerful chat with the server at the counter. He called out Eren’s name to get his attention.

“Oh, hey Levi! Good morning.” Eren replied, raising his mug at Levi.

“Drinking already, at the crack of dawn?” Levi asked as he walked closer.

Eren smiled, “It’s just water.”

Levi was pretty parched himself, so he raised his index finger at the server to indicate he’d like a drink as well. The server complied and Levi silently paid him as he sat down on the barstool next to Eren. He chugged down his drink which encouraged Eren to do the same.

“So, what do we have to head to Mitras for?” Eren asked after he polished off his drink.

“A new job,” Levi replied. “Erwin’s always got one waiting for me.”

“Do you have to ride all the way back there every time you finish a job?” Eren questioned.

“Not always,” Levi answered before chugging down his drink. “Erwin usually piles a few things on at a time so I can get things squared away from town to town. I usually go days and sometimes even weeks without heading in that direction.”

“So, do you know what might be next on the list for you then?” Eren asked as he slipped off his stool, clearly ready to go.   

Levi followed him toward the exit and sighed. “Who knows? Sometimes he has small jobs waiting for me, and other times…” Eren turned to face Levi when he trailed off. “Well, whenever you hear of any leads on the Warrior Chief, Erwin’s the person responsible for digging up the information.”

“Oh, so you _are_ trying to go after him then?” Eren asked before turning back around to leave the building.

“I never said I wasn’t. I just said you weren’t a match for him,” Levi replied, following Eren through the swing doors.

“Do you think Erwin will think differently?”

“Erwin’s not exactly a predictable man,” Levi answered, sensing the hopefulness in Eren’s voice.  “He might think you could take the guy on tomorrow, or he may just as well tell you to turn around and head home.” Eren was quiet for a moment and Levi pressed on, curious about his origins.  “Do you have a home to go to?”

They were approaching the livery where their horses stayed for the night.

“I don’t,” Eren said. “My home was burned down.”

Levi felt a bit bad for the guy. “Is that how Warrior Chief killed your parents?” He asked.

“No,” Eren answered as he entered the large building, heading in the direction of his horse. “I set it on fire after they were killed, the day that I decided to leave home.”

Levi chose not to ask any more questions. Somehow, he felt he could understand the pain Eren must have felt at the time. He never returned home after his mother passed away either. He tried to avoid the town of Orvud completely because of all the painful memories and nostalgic emotions tied to it. 

He was also sure that his late mother would have appreciated a visit to her gravesite every now and then, but he knew that would only open the wound he worked so hard to patch up.

When he located his black steed, he gave it a few gentle strokes on the snout before mounting. “Let’s get going. We should reach Mitras by the end of the day if we go at a steady pace.”

Eren nodded and followed.

* * *

The ride to Mitras was very quiet and awkward for Eren. He wanted to ask the man riding next to him questions, but he also didn’t want to get on his nerves. Levi seemed like someone who just wanted his peace and that if he wanted to talk, he’d be the first one to speak up. Eren didn’t always do well with silence. He was the type of person who sought out answers and wanted to share experiences. He wanted to know more about Levi, like where he came from, why he chose this path in life, what his greatest experiences were.

They stopped in the small town of Dauper to get a bite to eat. Eren asked Levi about what Erwin was like. Levi informed him that the man was usually very serious and that he had a very sharp mind. Things were always a gamble with him, but somehow those gambles usually worked out to their benefit. Erwin’s greatest objective at the current time was to find clues to the actions and whereabouts of the Warrior Chief. A task that was difficult as there were several corrupt lawmen who worked hard to cover up the outlaw’s tracks.

Levi also stated that despite Erwin’s typically serious nature, the man harbored a horrible sense of humor and had the most boisterous laugh one could ever imagine. Levi seemed to find it to be an endearing trait.

“The person you really need to worry about is Erwin’s wife, Hange,” Levi said with an almost warning tone to his voice. “She is a very passionate person and it bleeds through in her every action.”

Eren smiled, “Oh yeah?”

“She’s very interested in science and medicine,” Levi explained. “If there is something to be observed, she will observe it. If there is anything to be cured, you bet your ass she will work hard to find a way to cure it.” He paused for a moment and smiled, closing his eyes and crossing his arms. “That passion translates into her ideals as well. She is a very strong spoken individual. You never have to wonder what’s on her mind. Often times I think she speaks the things that Erwin doesn’t exactly want to say.”

Eren chuckled. People have always described him in a similar manner; very outspoken and very firm in his ideals. It wasn’t a lie. When Eren felt anything, he felt it without restraint and unapologetically. His best friend, Armin, worried that it would be his eventual downfall. Perhaps his friend would be right someday. “I can’t wait to meet them,” he said.

“Yeah, well, we’re not getting anywhere just sitting around here,” Levi said as he stood up from his chair, placing money down on the table. “If you’re done let’s get going. I’d like to get to Mitras by dusk.”

Eren complied and the two of them headed out once again. And once again, Levi fell silent and seemingly uninterested in conversation. Eren hoped that their time together wouldn’t always be spent like this. However, it gave him time to collect his thoughts. This was a new situation for him, after all. He’d been alone for the majority of the last four years. Sure, he’d go back to his hometown to visit Armin and catch up with him, but generally he tried to avoid going to Shiganshina. Most nights were spent alone in cheap hotel rooms and during particularly financially dry times, he’d have to huddle up to his horse in the desert at night, hoping that he wouldn’t get raided by someone. It was a miserable existence that he couldn’t wait to see an end to.

Honestly, he had hoped that the Warrior Chief would have been long dead by this point, but alas, he couldn’t even keep a tangible lead on the man for more than a few hours at a time. Besides, he knew that he was no match for the man in his current state.

Eren wanted to be a doctor like his father was. He never wanted an extravagant life. Maybe he’d settle down with a woman and start a family, heal the sick, help people in need. He never understood how bitter and lonely it is to be by himself until they died. It really threw him through a loop when he went from always having company to having no one to lean on. He hoped that one day he would eventually recover from this sinking feeling and find a way to become whole again. Sometimes he wanted to give up on this journey completely. But he was a man of conviction and he’ll be damned if he doesn’t make the Warrior Chief pay for the innocent lives he’s taken – not just his parent’s, but everyone who has fallen victim to him and his schemes.

After some time had passed, the two men could finally see Mitras on the horizon. It wasn’t anything grand by any means, but it was one of the larger towns in the greater area and generally one of the noisier places to be. Saloons and brothels were plentiful and there were always parties and rodeos to keep the townsfolk entertained. It was too noisy for Eren’s liking, but he would still take it over the existential loneliness of sleeping alone in the desert with nothing but his horse by his side.

Levi informed Eren that Erwin’s location was next to the livery there and that they would leave their horses for the night when they got into town. Eren had no objections to this.

Erwin was the sheriff of Mitras, apparently, and his office was a bit larger than the ones in the smaller towns. It made sense to Eren, bigger town, more criminals, and a greater need for law enforcement. The two men walked inside of the building and were greeted by a woman with messy, long, brown hair and thick-rimmed glasses.

“Oh, Levi!” She shouted, standing up from her seat at the front desk. Eren noticed that she was wearing pants instead of a dress. It was definitely unusual. “We weren’t expecting you here so early.” She turned her head to the back of the building and called for Erwin. After doing so, she noticed Eren standing next to Levi and gave him a quick once over. “Who do you have with you tonight?” She asked.

“This is Eren, uh…” Levi trailed off. Eren realized he never told the man his last name.

“Yeager. I’m Eren Yeager,” Eren said, extending his hand toward the woman. “You must be Hange?”

“I’m flattered Levi’s already told you about me,” Hange smiled as she shook Eren’s hand. “What brings you here with him?”

“It’s not important right now,” Levi said.

“Back so soon, Levi?” Eren heard a deep voice ask as he looked in the direction of the back doorway. A tall, blond, muscular man walked through, ducking as he came into the room. He was a conventionally attractive man, tall with blonde hair and blue eyes, strong cheekbones and a perfect smile. Together, he and Hange made quite a handsome couple.

“I took care of the job in Trost. The sheriff there already gave me my reward.” Levi said, cutting straight to business. “I’d just like to know what’s next on the menu before turning in for the night.”

“No bullshitting tonight?” Erwin asked, and Eren expected that their conversations usually start off differently. He noticed that Erwin was looking in his direction. “You are…?”

“Eren Yeager,” Hange answered. “He came in with Levi.”

“We’re partnering up for the time being,” Levi informed, sitting down at the desk and putting his feet on the surface. “He has some goals that align with ours, but he needs to work on his skills a bit.”

“I see,” Erwin said. “Well, if you’re just here for business, I suppose I should cut to the chase.” He handed Levi a piece of parchment with writing on it. The paper was crinkled up and messy, but it appeared to still be legible. “It’s a threat written to Rod Reiss.”

Levi crinkled his nose in distaste and Eren could only assume that he had no desire to help the guy out.

Erwin continued, “I don’t know all of the details yet, but an anonymous man is threatening to kidnap his daughter, Historia. He said he would meet with me about it tomorrow but wanted to let me know ahead of time that his daughter may be in trouble.”

“And he isn’t going to take the necessary precautions to protect her?” Levi asked, raising an eyebrow at the questionability of the situation.

“The anonymous man stated that he is an underling of Zeke’s. My guess is that Reiss denied him something he was requesting,” Erwin said. “Rod is a bad character, but he and Zeke have always been at odds.”

Eren snapped his head toward Levi, not fond of being left in the dark, “Who’s Zeke?”

Levi responded, “Zeke is the Warrior Chief.”

Eren nodded, tightening his fists as he looked down. All these years and he still never knew the man’s real name. Now that he did know, he would make sure never to forget it. Furrowing his brows and gritting his teeth, images began to flood his mind of how he might encounter Zeke one day. He imagined himself using the man’s name to throw him off, and as the man turned to face him as he’d cock his pistol, aim straight for the heart and—

“Eren, did you hear me?” Levi asked, snapping Eren out of his daydream.

“Sorry, what?”

“I said there’s nothing else for us to gain here right now,” Levi replied, a hint of irritation in his tone from having to repeat himself. “Let’s find a place to stay for the night. I’ll chat with Erwin again tomorrow after he meets with Reiss and we’ll go from there.”

Eren nodded and accepted the proposal. He was ready to wind down for the night. He looked forward to getting a hotel room and then checking into the saloon for a bit to loosen up with a drink or two.

* * *

The room he rented out for the night was quaint and cozy. There was a small bed seated by the window with an equally small dresser and nightstand. The hotel had a room for bathing, so Eren took a quick one to get the grime off of his skin. It’d been a while since he was able to soap himself down and he was thankful for the refreshing, tingling feeling on his flesh. Once he was all washed up, he returned to his room to get some money to head over to the saloon with.

He unlocked the drawer of the nightstand that he placed his money in and began to reach for his coin bag, only to be disrupted by a commotion in the window. He looked over to find a young woman in a dark blue dress with a gun holster slung over the waist ungracefully plopping through the architecture. With a grunt she landed on her bottom, black hair covering her face.

She didn’t seem to notice Eren in the room as she started mumbling to herself, pushing the hair away from her face, “Damn second floor windows. Why do these rooms always have to be in an upper level…”

She shifted her weight and positioned herself so that she could look out the window for a moment before turning to face the inside of the room. Eren recognized the girl from somewhere, but his memory was fuzzy. It wasn’t until she made direct eye contact with him that he noticed her Asian features. _Oh. It’s her._

Levi was right. The flyer didn’t do her any justice. Her eyes were dark, almost black, and her long, black hair shimmered beautifully in the glow of the lantern. She had a small nose and plump lips, the kind that one couldn’t help but desire to kiss. Her pale skin was a beautiful contrast against the dark denim dress that hugged her robust curves and her hands looked soft. She was a stunning woman.

“You…!”

The woman lunged over in Eren’s direction, covering up his mouth and wrapping an arm loosely around his neck. “Don’t say a word. Don’t move. I have a weapon and I will use it.”

“Mmfph?” Eren couldn’t talk with that hand around his mouth, but he definitely wanted some answers.

“Just until the lawmen pass through. They’re looking for me,” the woman said as she let go of his mouth. “Someone I haven’t seen in a while is in town right now and I need to find him.”

“You’re—”

“The Moonlight Rider, yes,” the woman responded, finishing Eren’s sentence for him. “You stay right there, don’t move.”

Eren listened and complied. At least, he did until she started rummaging through his drawer.

“Oh, no, no, no,” Eren started, reaching to grab her arm and pull her away. “If you want me to stay quiet you sure as shit ain’t about to rob me, too.”

“A girl’s gotta eat,” the woman insisted as she yanked her arm away. She pulled a pistol out of her holster, pointed it in Eren’s direction and repeated her previous command. “Don’t move.”

Eren cursed that he had his gun put away and couldn’t use it to counter her. She was a beautiful woman, yes, but Eren was already certain that she had no redeeming qualities and he found himself confused by Levi’s commentary about how civilians like her.

She took what she wanted out of Eren’s coin bag and peeked outside of the window again, confirming that her pursuers were gone. She withdrew her pistol and placed it back into her holster. “I took enough for food and a new pair of pants,” she said as she started making her way to the window. “This dress just ain’t cutting it.”

She winked at Eren and he couldn’t help but feel his cheeks heat up. “I’ll pay you back sometime. Thank you for staying quiet for me,” she said with a playful tone, bending over to give Eren a light kiss on the cheek before maneuvering herself out of the room and onto the roof of the hotel. His heart began to betray him, beating rapidly as he tried to process what just happened. As soon as he snapped back to reality, he wiped his cheek off in disgust and swore under his breath, angry that he just let that happen.

After checking his coin bag, he discovered he still had enough to get a couple drinks for the night (barely enough, the woman took as much as she could get away with without letting him starve), and headed down the stairs. He was definitely in need of a distraction after that fiasco.

There was music playing and girls all around trying to find a good time for the night. The saloons in larger towns like this were always sloppy. Drunk men and women everywhere, feeling on each other, rough housing with each other and just generally being obnoxious and, well, drunk. He flirted with the idea of bringing a girl to his room for the night but opted not to. He’d still never been with a woman and desired to do so only when he was truly in love with one.

It wasn’t long after he downed his second drink that he noticed Levi outside of the window talking with another person in the alleyway between the saloon and the building next door. He was curious, so he walked over to take a peek through.

“No way,” he said under his breath as he got a good look at the woman Levi was with. It was the same woman who just robbed him not thirty minutes ago.

He watched as Levi wrapped his arm around her waist, bringing her closer. He hated that the crowded saloon was too noisy for him to make out what they were saying. The two of them began to kiss, and Eren could see that there was a passion between them. When they separated, Levi’s eyes were not filled with lust, but rather adoration. He watched as Levi whispered something in her ear before they walked off together and out of eyeshot.

Eren wished he could afford enough whiskey to forget the little scene he just witnessed. Ready for the day to end, he headed back to his hotel to call it a night.

He was unable to sleep and wondered what Levi’s connection really was with this woman. It was obvious he was more than just “familiar with her” as he put it before. He supposed it wasn’t his place to know though, especially since Levi was so adamant about his privacy. Perhaps that was the reason why; he was in love with an outlaw. It was a forbidden love. He wondered if Erwin was aware of this love affair.

If Levi was close to the Moonlight Rider, there had to be more to her and Eren hoped to find out what that was.

* * *

“Stay with me tonight?” Levi asked softly, knowing that he was going to be denied this one, simple request. This is how things were, now. Staring at the half-naked woman in front of him, he imagined holding her all though the night with their flesh pressed against each other. His fantasy wasn’t sexual in nature, he just wanted to be intimate with her. Just for a little longer.

She walked over to Levi and sat next to him on the bed, her dress only half pulled up and her breasts still exposed. Her hair was disheveled from their moments of passion together and he knew she’d have to at least stick around long enough to get the newly created tangles out of it. She eyed him over for a moment before giving him a tender kiss on the lips. “I’m on the hunt tonight.”

“Come back to me after that?” He wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling back so they were both lying on the bed together, her head resting on his shoulder. “I miss you.”

He could feel her fingertips caressing the sensitive skin on his abdomen before she placed a light kiss to his collar bone. “I miss you too,” she replied. “But I have to get these guys tonight, and I don’t know that I’ll have the chance to escape back here unnoticed.”

“I can come with you,” Levi suggested, forgetting his obligation to Eren in a moment of weakness.

“No,” the woman replied. “I have to be as inconspicuous as possible. Plus, I don’t need to you lecturing me on how I do my work.”

“I don’t lecture you,” Levi said, only to be met with the woman’s giggle and a kiss to the cheek. She got up, continued to get herself dressed and worked on untangling her hair. He was still naked himself and he could see her glancing in his direction (she was trying to be sneaky about it) as she fixed up her hair and finished getting ready to leave. “Mikasa…” He said, trailing off before he could finish his thought. She walked over to him and gently grabbed his chin, looking him straight in the eyes.

“We’ll see each other again soon, okay?” She pulled his face up for one more goodbye kiss. “Take care of yourself.”

And before he knew it, she was already gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mikasa's dress is inspired by [this](http://recollections.biz/Merchant2/graphics/00000001/111261.jpg)


	3. The Moonlight Rider

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She wasn’t a vicious outlaw like the flyers said. She was a vigilante. She was a threat to corruption. She liked it that way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My lovely beta thinks my writing is improving so I'm super happy about that. I hope it's reflecting well. I hope you guys like Mikasa! <3

There was a sense of guilt that Mikasa felt as she left Levi alone at the motel. He clearly still yearned for her and she was always the one to who left him behind, waiting. It’s not as though she didn’t feel the same way for him. On the contrary, she still thought about him every day. They had simply developed a divide in priorities and Mikasa wasn’t about to drop hers in order to appease Levi, or perhaps more importantly, Erwin Smith. It was Levi who Erwin snatched away from the dark shadows in which they used to reside together, and it was Levi who discovered a new sense of purpose because of him. She, however, did not take that path with him. She resisted and she struggled and her stubbornness ultimately decided that she would continue living in the shadows.

She liked things that way. She enjoyed being the Moonlight Rider, exacting revenge where it was necessary, bringing justice to those who wronged the weak, and assisting those who are most in need of her help. The Moonlight Rider wasn’t a dangerous outlaw like the flyers said. She was a vigilante. She was fierce and she was tough; she was praised and revered. Most importantly, she was feared. She was feared by those who have no heart, no empathy, no compassion, and no soul.

Levi no longer held such a presence, Mikasa felt. Sure, he was strong and he was someone who inspired her, but he also chose to submit to rules and guidelines. She respected that about him, and she chose to respect his decision, but she was certain that she could never live such a life. Rules would only hold her back.

Before leaving town, she stopped by a shop that was closing down for the night. After offering the shop owner a little extra money, she was allowed to get what it was that she needed before heading out. She was relieved to have a pair of pants, although disappointed she had to leave such a pretty dress behind.

She rode her horse outside of town for a few miles before she reached her destination. There was an unoccupied cave that she knew became home to travelers often and she chose to stake out inside. Already her clothing began to get dirty as the faint wind blew the loose dust on her. She didn’t care about it, though, as she knew she was probably about to get a lot dirtier.

After waiting patiently, she noticed a wagon headed in her direction with two men sitting at the front. She couldn’t see inside of the wagon but the cargo was precisely why she was here. She stepped out from the cave and slowly moved to the center of the dirt trail, stopping with the intent of blocking the wagon. She placed a hand on her hip over the holster and let the other arm relax by her side.

“Well, well, look at what we got here,” the man steering the cart said as he heeled the horses pulling the wagon forward. “A stray.”

“What’s in the wagon?” Mikasa asked, firmly gripping her hand around the base of the pistol.

The man let out a gruff chuckle and replied, “Why, it’s stock that we’re shipping out.” Mikasa noticed a couple of men heading in her direction from behind the wagon. Their malicious intent was clear in the crooked smiles they wore and the guns in their hands. “You wanna check it over for yourself?”

She pulled out her pistol and took aim straight for the man on the wagon. “If your men value their lives, you’ll tell them to back off immediately.”

“Well, aren’t you a feisty one,” the man said. “You’ve even got a nice, shiny toy there.” His condescension made Mikasa sick to her stomach, even though she was used to it. She was an Asian woman, after all, and many of her targets viewed people like her as nothing more than a plaything. “Bet you don’t even know how to use it.”

With no patience left, Mikasa didn’t hesitate to fire two quick shots into the men who were walking toward her. As they fell to the ground, Mikasa shot a third round which knocked the hat off of the man on the wagon’s head. She blew the steam off the end of her gun and stared the man straight in the eyes. “I suggest you abandon the wagon now.”

Unsurprisingly, the man did not comply. He spurred his horses and began to dash off.

Mikasa was quick to action and managed to hop onto the back of the wagon, making her way inside. As she suspected, there were people back here. Asian women and their daughters, with their mouths covered in cloth and hands tied behind their backs. Their expressions remained blank and defeated, and now their eyes were all squared in on Mikasa. She put a finger up to her lips signaling for them to remain quiet. “I’m here to save you guys,” she whispered. “The ride might get a little bumpy. Just hang tight.” She was relieved to see a little bit of hope sparkling in a few of their eyes.

She raised one side of her pants up to reveal a small dagger tied onto her leg and pulled it out. Quietly, she sliced open the front of the wagon so she could get access to the man steering the horses. “Close your eyes,” she said softly, directing her words more at the children inside.

She moved through the make-shift slit that she created and plopped down next to the driver. He noticed her presence immediately and jumped, scrambling to pull his gun out of his holster. But his grip on the pistol was loose and Mikasa was quick to knock it out of his hand, leaving him defenseless. “I was going to suggest you head to the authorities quietly but I can tell you’re eager to die, so I’ll make this quick and painless for you,” Mikasa said firmly.

“Fuck you,” the man spat out before abandoning the wagon, jumping off and rolling onto the ground. Mikasa quickly grabbed the reins of the horses and prompted them to slow down and heel. Once the wagon was a completely stop, she hopped off, readying her gun and hoping that the criminal was still within her sights. Unfortunately, he was nowhere to be found. Mikasa found this to be a problem as she refused to let the bad guys get away from her. She continued to scan the area, hoping that she would spot some movement. The wind howled and the moon beamed down, revealing nothing but half-dead trees and flying dust. After a few minutes, Mikasa accepted that the man was out of her reach. Right now her priority was to get these people to safety.

She crawled back into the wagon and gripped her dagger once again. She cut open the ropes that bound their hands behind their backs and helped remove the cloth tied around their mouths. She urged them all to remain quiet when they tried to show her their gratitude. She stepped on a crumpled piece of paper and picked it up, observing the contents. The handwriting was familiar, and it made her skin crawl. _Him again…_

“We’re not in the clear yet. I need to get you away from here.”

“Ma’am, we just want to get back home,” one of the women spoke up as she embraced her daughter.

“I know,” Mikasa replied. She did a quick headcount and found there were twelve people total in the wagon. That wasn’t a problem. “I should have enough money to cover you all for train tickets. We’ll head to Mitras and I’ll stay with you all at the train station until I see you all leave safely tomorrow morning.”

“Thank you,” another woman replied, a relieved smile on her face.

“What’s your name?” One of the young girls asked, looking at Mikasa with wonder.

“Just call me the Moonlight Rider,” Mikasa smiled softly. “You folks just enjoy the ride for now.” She crawled back up to the carriage and spurred the horses, heading back to Mitras.

As promised, she stayed with this group of people until they were safely on a train back home in the morning.

* * *

Later that morning, Mikasa bought herself some apples from a street-side merchant and made her way to the outskirts of town. She found a tree and settled down next to it, choosing to relax with a good book as she ate one of her apples.

Her peace was interrupted much quicker than she anticipated it would be, however, when she sensed the presence of a gun pointed in her direction. Using her peripheral vision, she saw a tuft of brown hair and a familiar red bandana. She did not flinch nor did she cower. She knew this man was harmless to her.

“You tracked me all the way out here, huh?” She asked before taking a bite of her apple, keeping her attention focused on her book. “Silly me, I was hoping to get a few minutes to relax with a good book.”

“Yeah, well it must be exhausting running from the law and stealing people’s money for frivolous things like clothes,” the man responded, inching his way toward her, pistol still pointed straight in her direction.

Mikasa didn’t budge or change her expression. “I said I was going to pay you back.”

“You don’t even know who I am,” the man said.

“Brown hair, green eyes, red bandana, stupid expression. It’s not hard to remember a face,” Mikasa replied. “But if you insist, I can remember names, too.”

“I just want you to turn yourself in peacefully,” the man said. Mikasa finally gave him her full attention, facing up to look at him.

“Put the gun down,” she said. “You’re hardly threatening to me with that thing.” Watching as he hesitantly lowered his weapon, she placed an old flower inside of her book as a bookmark and set it on the ground beside her. “What’s your name?”

“What’s yours?” the man asked, deflecting the question posed to him. “Your real name, that is.”

“I believe I asked you first. You’re a gentleman, no?”

With a sigh, the man replied, “Eren.”

“Eren. That’s a nice name,” Mikasa commented. “You can just keep calling me the Moonlight Rider.”

The two of them remained silent for a short while. Eren stood there staring intently at Mikasa and she stared back, studying the expression on his face. It was one of determination and passion, but she could also sense a strong sadness behind those emerald eyes. Perhaps it was the same kind of sadness she felt in her own heart. A sadness born from melancholic memories, loss, and a void that can never be filled again.

She could tell that Eren was choking on any words he might want to say, and decided that it was time to cut through the air and speak up first. “What do you know about the Moonlight Rider?”

“Nothing,” Eren replied. “You’re a wanted criminal and you stole from me. That’s all I know.”

“So you don’t even know what I’m wanted for,” Mikasa chuckled softly. “You’re all for justice, aren’t you. You don’t even question who might be on the wrong or right side. If someone is deemed dangerous or a menace, they must be brought to justice, in your eyes.” She wanted to believe her assessment was spot on, and she was confident that it was.

She wasn’t all that different, she supposed.

“Are you implying that you’re not in the wrong in your actions?” Eren questioned. Mikasa noticed the furrowing of his brows and the crinkle in his nose. It was apparent that he had a clear distaste for her. He really was a black and white person, wasn’t he?

“Well,” Mikasa started as she stood up. “I saved twelve people last night. Seven grown women and five young girls.” She walked over to her horse and placed her book inside of a bag hanging from the saddle. “They were going to be sold into sex slavery.”

“One good deed doesn’t erase all the wrong you’ve done.” Eren said with conviction.

“The men I fought off last night were simple thugs. But in the past I have dealt with men with badges carrying the same kind of cargo,” Mikasa countered. “Respected sheriffs and marshals participating in shady dealings, trading off people for money, drugs, booze and sex. I’ve caught many lawmen fraternizing with outlaws.”

Eren narrowed his eyes, but offered no reply.

“I exposed some of them, killed others,” she continued. “Just because a man wears a badge, doesn’t mean he is a good man.” She hopped onto her horse and swung a leg on either side. “Just because a woman is wanted doesn’t mean that she has done bad things. Men in power don’t like it when you threaten that power.”

“Why were you with Levi Ackerman last night?” Eren asked, quickly changing the topic.

Mikasa was taken aback by the question. She always tried to keep her endeavors with Levi private and unnoticed. When did Eren see them together, and how did he know Levi?

“What’s your business with a guy like him?”

“He offered to help me sharpen my skills,” Eren answered.

“Levi is an old friend. That’s all you need to know,” Mikasa said, turning her attention away. “Tell me, what do you know now about the Moonlight Rider?” She was determined to steer the conversation back onto the original topic before heading out.

“The Moonlight Rider is a wanted outlaw.” Eren replied, unwavering in his assessment of her. “And I will bring her to justice.”

Mikasa huffed. “You won’t stay on Levi’s good side with that attitude.” She warned before spurring her horse and leaving Eren behind.

She wasn’t sure to make of this guy. Something about him seemed alluring to her, like she wanted to know more about him. If Levi had an interest in him, there must be something more there than meets the eye.

“Sure,” she smiled to herself. “I’m willing to play a little game of cat and mouse.”

* * *

A gunfire shot echoed through the still air, followed by Eren’s frustrated grumbling.

“Okay,” Levi interrupted. “Your first issue is that you’re aiming with one eye and you’re holding the gun too far to the side.” He pulled his pistol out and aimed for a bottle they set on top of a rock, shot a round and watched the glass burst. “You’ve got to let the pistol become an extension of you. Aim in the middle and keep both eyes open. It’ll take some practice, but I assure you it will yield you far better results and you’ll do much better in a draw.”

“The way I’ve been shooting has worked just fine for me. I just need more practice,” Eren insisted.

“You said you want to be faster and more efficient. I’m giving you a way to do that. Either you want to learn from me or you don’t.” Levi walked over to the rock to set a new bottle on top of it. “Give it a try.”

With a sigh, Eren raised his gun and tried to do as Levi said. But again, he missed the bottle and grew more frustrated. “This is terrible. I can’t aim like this.”

“You’re simply not used to it. We have plenty of bullets, just keep going until you hit.”

Eren did as Levi told him and continued to try and shoot the bottle. He’d do better if his concentration wasn’t hindered by the last day’s events. He took a deep breath and focused on the feel of the pistol in his hands, trying to clear his mind. He took aim, cocked the gun and tried again.

He grinned as the bottle shattered before him.  He knew concentration was the key.  “Yes! I did it Levi!”

“Alright,” Levi said. “Just keep going like that. We’ve still got a while before we need to meet up with Erwin for our next move.”

As Levi directed, Eren continued to practice shooting this way, and began to find it much easier as he started hitting more bottles. Eventually they ran out of targets to practice on and the two of them decided it was time to grab a bite to eat.

“Levi, can I ask you something?” Eren asked as they ate their meal.

“That depends on the question,” Levi replied before taking a sip of his soup.

Eren hesitated at first, but found the strength to bring the subject up. “What’s your relationship to the Moonlight Rider?”

“You saw us together, didn’t you?” Levi asked, setting his spoon into the bowl and leaning back against his chair. Eren swallowed hard, nervous that he might have touched on a sour subject. Levi sighed before continuing. “I suppose it only would have been a matter of time if you stick around for a while anyway.”

“Sir?”

“Before I met Erwin, she was my partner in crime, as they’d say.” He took another sip of his soup. “Parted ways a few years ago, though. We had a difference in views.”

“It seems like you two are closer than that,” Eren responded, confused and a little disappointed at the short and vague answer from Levi.

“There’s still a connection, I suppose,” Levi said. Although given the somber expression on Levi’s face, Eren could tell that things weren’t the way he wished for them to be. “But she isn’t something we should be focusing on right now.”

“Um… right.” Eren replied. “I’m sorry if I brought up a touchy subject.” He’d considered telling Levi about last night’s robbery but ultimately decided against it.  Given what else he’d seen, Eren was sure Levi already knew that side of her. He decided it would be a good time to change the subject, so he asked Levi what was next on their agenda.

“Well, Historia Reiss is still out of harm’s way. But Erwin thinks it’s only a matter of time before Rod Reiss calls for him again,” Levi said. “For now, he wants us to head to Karaness to check on some suspicious characters he believes are underlings of the Warrior Chief.”

“Okay.”

“We should head out now,” Levi suggested as he pushed his chair away from the table.

“Levi, can I ask you one more question?” Eren asked as he watched the other man stand up. Levi looked down to him, anticipating the inquiry. “Do you love her?”

He studied Levi’s expression as the man stayed silent. He looked melancholic, almost as if Eren said something that broke him. “Let’s head out,” was all he said before turning to walk away.

Eren understood, and followed right behind him.


	4. To the North

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren and Levi get word of Historia's kidnapping and head North. Eren makes a couple new acquaintances although he's not sure if they really are how they seem.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been a while guys! This chapter seems a bit shorter than I originally thought it was now that I'm uploading it, lol. I'll try and get another update soon!
> 
> Also thank you so much to [Shulkie](http://perksofbeingawaifu.tumblr.com) for looking this over for me! :D

Eren really despised the summer. It was already hot enough in the desert, but in the summer it upgraded to hell status. What made it worse was that without wearing his hat and trench coat, he would wind up even more miserable with the sunburn that would surely brand him if he tried to cool down. He did, however, tip his hat for a moment to wipe the sweat from his brow. He could only imagine how much worse he would feel if he weren’t on horseback.

“Did you fill your canister before we left?” Levi asked, noticing Eren’s obvious discomfort.

“I may have forgotten,” Eren replied.

Levi sighed and tossed his canister over. “There isn’t any water for miles, drink sparingly.”

“Thanks,” Eren started as he popped off the lid. “But what about you?”

“We’re sharing,” Levi said as he turned his attention forward. “If either of us gets overheated then it will be a problem.”

Eren observed Levi’s stoic expression and wondered how it was possible to stay so stone-faced all the time. He wasn’t a particularly stern person from what Eren could tell. And it’s not as though he’d never seen emotion seep through Levi’s expression, but his default was this super serious look that teetered on the line between sad and angry. It made him intimidating to talk to at times.

Levi wiped the sweat that was about to drip off of his nose away and turned his attention back to Eren.

“What in the hell are you staring so hard for?” he asked, definitely irritated now that he caught Eren looking at him.

“Nothing, I just…” Eren trailed off, turning his attention forward. “It’s hot and I’m just a little exhausted. Sorry.” He tried to focus on the tumbleweed that blew across the ground in front of them and cleared his throat.

 _Please drop it, please drop it_. He thought to himself in hopes that Levi wouldn’t drag the awkward situation forward any longer.

He managed to catch a lucky break on that front when he heard a horse galloping quickly behind them. They both turned their attention toward it, alert and ready to attack if need be. But they both understood their weapons weren’t needed when they recognized the tuft of hair flowing through the wind.

“It’s... Hange?” Levi stated, confused.

“What’s she doing way out here?” Eren asked.

“Levi!” Hange shouted once she was within range. “I’m so glad I finally caught you! I’ve been searching everywhere.”

Alerted, Levi asked, “What is it?”

Hange took her glasses off for a brief moment to wipe the sweat from her eyes and forehead and placed them back on. “Historia’s been kidnapped.”

“Already?” Levi asked. Eren noticed that the stoic expression was still going nowhere. He knew they were expecting this to happen eventually, but he was taken aback by the lack of surprise on Levi’s part.

“Here,” Hange said as she handed Levi a piece of parchment. “It’s a message from one of Zeke’s lackeys. Looks like the signature says Colt?” She stopped briefly so Levi could skim over the message. “They’re in Orvud, according to the letter. Rod has a week to cough up the cash or her life is in real danger.”

Eren saw Levi’s expression change immediately from impassive to something pained. “Orvud?”

“What’s important about Orvud?” Eren asked.

“I’m sorry, Levi, I know you don’t like to go there,” Hange said, seemingly ignoring Eren.

“It can’t be helped,” Levi said as he folded the parchment and placed it in his pocket. “We’ll get there as soon as we can. Although it will probably take the full week to get there. Five days if we exhaust our horses.”

Eren sat in silence. He felt a little irritated that his question went ignored but chose to exercise some patience and ask Levi about it again later.

“Also,” Hange said as Levi was about to turn to leave. Her expression was firm. “A young freckled woman came to us just before I left. She was also concerned about Historia. I told her I couldn’t disclose the information because I didn’t know who she was, but I have a feeling she’s following me. She may continue on to follow you guys. Stay alert.”

“Sure,” Levi said as he turned his horse in the opposite direction. “Thank you Hange. Let Erwin know I’m on it.”

Hange gave him a thumbs up and turned her horse in the opposite direction, taking off the way she came.

“Levi, what is in Orvud?” Eren asked, still wanting his earlier question answered.

“It’s not important. Let’s get going.” Levi replied, avoiding eye contact. He spurred his horse and headed forward. Eren groaned for a brief moment while he was sure he was out of earshot and followed behind. All he could wonder was why was it so hard for him to get some damn answers from anyone?

The sun would be setting soon. Eren hoped that they would find a town to stay at for the night.

* * *

Fortunately the two of them were able to stop in the town of Ermich. They put their horses into the town’s Livery for the night and headed to the nearest saloon. Levi immediately went upstairs to ready himself a bath, but Eren chose to stick around in the main area and have a drink or two.

“You don’t seem to be from around these parts,” a man said as he sat in the bar stool next to Eren’s. When Eren looked over, he saw a rugged, burly blond man next to him. He wore a ragged, brown duster and a pair of chaps. He had a light beard on his face, a strong nose and a friendly expression despite his stern features.

“Oh…” Eren started, unsure how to reply. “No, I’m originally from a small town down south called Shiganshina. What clued you in?”

“You’re just an unfamiliar face,” the man said as he tipped a finger up to the bartender to get his attention. “Whiskey, please.”

“To be honest it’s nice to be up North a bit. I’d like to think the heat is a little more bearable up here right now,” Eren chuckled.

“Nah, it’s like being in the pit of hell wherever you go around here,” the man replied. “The name’s Reiner.” He extended his hand.

Eren reached out and gave him a shake. “I’m Eren.”

“Good to meet you,” Reiner smiled. “You just headed through town or do you have business here?”

Eren was a little thrown off by the prying question, so he chose to give a vague answer. “Just passing through. I’ve got business further up North. How about you? Is this your hometown?”

“Nah,” Reiner said as he gently shook his head. “I’ve got business here for a few days.”

That was fair enough. One vague answer to another. They were simply strangers after all.

“Wanna play a round of darts? I’m waiting on my partner to get here,” Reiner asked after downing his whiskey shot.

Eren repeated the motion with his own drink and nodded. “Sure.”

The two of them walked to the other side of the saloon. Reiner commented on how the music wasn’t in his taste tonight, but that it rarely ever was. Eren could agree with him on that. But then, he’d never been a fan of saloon music anyway.

The two of them played a few rounds of darts. Eren could never seem to get the upper hand to Reiner’s almost consistent bullseyes. Admittedly, he’d never really played before short of a few games with his dad when he was a child. He wasn’t sure this was something he could ever make a hobby out of given the sad memories he had of a man who would never be able to hug him again.

Roughly thirty minutes passed before a tall, dark haired man walked into the saloon.

“Ah, Bertolt!” Reiner exclaimed, hitting another bullseye just before he turned his attention. “Good of you to finally show up.” He walked over to Bertolt and put his hand on his shoulder, leaning up to whisper something in his ear. Eren noticed Bertolt nod before they walked back into his direction. “Eren, I’d like you to meet my partner in crime. Bertolt.”

Eren looked up and noticed that Bertolt had a very timid expression and a story behind his brown eyes. He had a curved nose and dark brown hair. His hat was a little large for his head and he wore a black duster to match Reiner’s brown one. They both looked like they’ve been out on the road for weeks based on the roughness of their clothes.

“Nice to meet you, I’m Eren,” he said as he extended his hand.

“You too,” Bertolt replied as he accepted the gesture.

The three of them shared a few more drinks together and told stories of their adventures in the West. Eren found the both of them to be very interesting. They lived an adventurous life filled with gun slinging action, although they never indicated that they were bounty hunters or sheriffs or anything of the sort. Something about it seemed a little off, but after a few shots of whiskey, Eren didn’t think much about it.

He also learned that they were traveling with a girl named Annie, but that she wasn’t much of the social type and had already retired to a room for the night. After losing a few more games of darts, Eren had decided that turning in for the night was probably a good idea himself.

“Guys, it’s been a lot of fun. I should hit the sack. Maybe we’ll see each other again!” He said gleefully.

“Absolutely,” Reiner said. “It was good to meet you, Eren.”

With that, Eren waved at the two men and headed upstairs to go to his room. However, when he turned the corner he ran into Levi.

“Those two… did they seem suspicious to you?” Levi asked.

“Um,” Eren started, unsure of a solid answer, wondering if Levi was watching him the entire time he was hanging around them. “Maybe a little, but I don’t feel like they’re dangerous or anything.” He’d wondered if Levi knew them from somewhere before.

Levi hummed a moment before speaking again. “Get some rest, Eren. We have a long day tomorrow.”

“Sure.”

Eren had no room to question Levi further as the man retreated to his room. Eren shrugged and did the same, taking refuge in his bed almost immediately and losing himself to slumber.

* * *

The morning already started out as an interesting one. Things seemed normal at the start; Eren woke up, got dressed and headed down for a glass of water and some breakfast. Levi had dropped by to let Eren know that he would be heading to a couple of shops before they head out for the day to pick up some food for the road and a few other small things. But Eren’s peace and quiet was interrupted when a man ran inside of the saloon shouting, “Guys, come quick! There’s a duel goin’ on!”

Naturally intrigued, Eren stood up and headed outside the swinging doors of the saloon. Unable to see anything, he walked around the group of men so that he could get a better view. The first thing he noticed was a short blonde girl pacing back and forth, hand firm on the pistol in her holster.

His stomach dropped when he got a look at her opponent. Those unique features were unmistakable, even from a distance.

“They’re going at it again, eh?” Eren heard a familiar voice approach from behind him. He looked back to see Reiner and Bertolt. They look like they’d just rolled out of bed themselves.

“You know them?” Eren asked.

“The blonde is Annie, the girl that’s with us,” Bertolt said. “The other is—”

“The Moonlight Rider, I know.” Eren interrupted, putting his attention back at the duel going on in front of him. “They do this often?”

“Every time they see each other,” Bertolt confirmed. “They’re always testing each other’s skills.”

“How did they come to know each other?” Eren questioned. He was only met with a shrug, however. As should be expected, more people who were unwilling to give him any answers.

“How do you know her?” Reiner asked.

Eren decided to be vague again, just as everyone else seemed to be with him. “I’ve ran into her a couple times.” And now that he thought about it, she still owed him his money, and he still wanted to do something about her wrongdoings, and dammit he was still angry with her. Without indicating he was going to leave, he headed into the direction of the livery to get his horse. Once mounted, he double checked to see if Levi was within sight before nudging the horse forward.

“Moonlight Rider!” He shouted as he headed in their direction full speed. He noticed as she removed her attention from Annie and glanced at him for but a moment before running to her horse. She hopped on quickly and the horse galloped out of town. Eren stayed in pursuit.

“You aren’t getting away this time!” Eren shouted, pulling his gun from his holster and readying himself to shoot.


	5. Rescue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to Mikasa, Eren starts to get a taste of the world of grey, learning not everything is as black and white as he wants it to be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry for taking so long between updates. I promise I'm actually feeling quite inspired to keep working on this now and am committed to updating as regularly as possible. The ball is finally going to start rolling on the parts I've been wanting to get to, so my excitement has started to grow a lot! 
> 
> This chapter ended up quite a bit longer than the previous ones, both because of my enthusiasm and also because I wanted to make up for taking so long.

Eren’s breathing quickly became ragged as he made chase toward the Moonlight Rider. There was a voice in the back of his head telling him that this was a terrible idea, but it was completely overridden by the anger he still felt for the other night and her attitude in general toward him.

What did Levi see in her?

Who was she to him?

How do they know each other?

He didn’t care right now. All he knew was that she was a criminal who stole from him on top of a laundry list of other transgressions he’d likely never forgive. Outlaws were never to be trusted.

Unsurprisingly, the Moonlight Rider kept looking back at him, but didn’t speak a word nor did she try to stop or change her course. Frankly, it was pissing Eren off. Completely on impulse, he drew out his pistol and started firing warning shots in her direction.

“Stop the horse now, or I’m gonna get serious!” He shouted, not sure if he could truly back up his words, before firing another warning shot.

Without any time to think, he realized that a shot had damn near grazed his own cheek. He rubbed his hand across it to make sure no damage was done, but when he focused back on what was in front of him he realized that the Moonlight Rider had come to a halt. He reined in his horse to get him to stop and it worked perfectly… except for the part where he was suddenly flying through the air over her and landed hard on the ground.

“Shit…” he said with a groan as he tried to turn his body around. He landed square on his back and had a sharp pain shooting what seemed like directly up his spine. “What the hell…?”

Unable to move his body as freely as he wanted, he realized that his nemesis was standing over him.

“Didn’t I already tell you that you’re going to completely screw up anything you have with Levi right now if you try to come after me?” She had a dark look in her charcoal eyes as she peered down on him, the sunlight beaming from behind her and casting a shadow over her face. “If this is still about the money, I can get it to you within a week if you would just exercise some patience.”

“Did you miss me on purpose?” Eren asked, still trying to muster up the strength to move. It wasn’t going very successfully and he was certain he was either paralyzed or about to die. The latter was preferable if he had to pick one.

Finally, she crouched down and got closer to Eren, her face becoming less menacing without the sunlight shining from directly behind her anymore. “I never miss on accident,” she said assuredly. Admittedly, Eren would kill to have even an ounce of the confidence and skill that she and Levi seemed to have. It was almost completely supernatural how skilled they were at what they do. “There’s an abandoned barn not too far from here, let’s get you out of this heat.”

* * *

 

“Yikes! That’s gonna bruise something terrible,” the Moonlight Rider said as she ran a wet towel across Eren’s back. “But it doesn’t look like you have any serious injuries.” She’d insisted on cleaning him up and making sure that he didn’t get seriously hurt after flying off his horse. It turns out the worst of it was simply that he landed on his back a little too hard which made it hard for him to get up initially. “I’m sorry about that.”

Eren felt surprised by the sincerity in her voice. It was a tone she’d never shown him in the few times they’ve ran into each other and frankly he was surprised to find that she had a nurturing side to her at all. He sat quietly as she wrapped some bandages around his torso, closing his eyes and still faintly annoyed about the way the day has progressed.

He closed his eyes as she continued to wrap the bandage around him. This wasn’t a good time to get an injury. Not when he and Levi were about to close in on another clue and save an innocent girl in the process. He was an idiot for losing sight of what was important just so he could chase this woman he knew he’d see again eventually anyway. He understood that he really needed to learn how to check his impulses better.

When he opened his eyes, he looked down to see her cutting off an edge to the bandage and tying it up so that it wouldn’t fall off. “Anyway, just give me a week, alright?”

Eren felt his cheeks burn as she looked up at him from her crouched position. Her eyes seemed bigger than he initially recalled and… were her lips always so luscious? He turned his head away from her, focusing his attention to the door and wishing the heat in his cheeks would go away. “I don’t care about the money,” he said.

“Then what can I do to get you off my case? Turning myself in isn’t on the table,” she replied, sitting down next to him and crossing her arms.

Eren stayed quiet as he tried to think of anything he could gain out of this situation. He knew that Levi was going to be utterly livid with him by the time he inevitably caught up with them.

“What’s your name?” He asked impulsively, still desiring to know what to properly call her. Perhaps even more so now that he was noticing the pleasant red hue that tinted her cheeks.

“It’s… Mikasa,” she replied with hesitation.

“Mikasa,” Eren repeated, surprised at how nicely the name fell on his lips. “It suits you.” His stomach did a backflip as she smiled at the compliment. She seemed to be in a good enough mood to share information, so Eren decided to pry on the topic he was especially curious about lately. “What’s your relationship to Levi?”

He noticed a faint smile spread across her lips as she started to relax her shoulders. “I’m guessing you have been nagging him for these answers as well?” She asked, the tone in her voice almost playful.

Eren started to twiddle his thumbs as his hands rested between his thighs. “He isn’t too open about sharing details with me,” he admitted. “But I think it has more to do with wanting to protect you? Or he just really thinks it’s not my business.”

“It’s not your business,” Mikasa said curtly. The pain Eren suddenly felt in his chest was sharp. “But you’re probably correct in that he is just trying to protect me.”

Already braced to have his questions continue to be unanswered, Eren started speaking. “You don’t have to—”

“Levi and I are… a complicated matter,” Mikasa said, cutting off Eren’s words. He looked over to her and she seemed surprisingly relaxed over what always seemed to be a tense topic around Levi. “We are involved with each other, but also not…”

“That seems… confusing?”

“Not really,” Mikasa said, closing her eyes and smiling softly. “We just can’t agree on how to live our lives, but we care for each other.”

“Levi did tell me you guys used to be ‘partners in crime.’ What did he mean by that? And how did you guys meet?” Eren pried further.

“Eren!!” The voice was loud and stern and caused Eren to flinch. He recognized it clear as day and turned his head to find that Levi had been standing in the opening to the barn, fists balled at his side.

“ _Shit…_ ” Eren whispered to himself before standing up.

“I take my eyes off of you for five minutes and you go chasing after Moonlight of all people!?” Levi was walking over with purpose, clearly upset with the course of action Eren chose to take this morning.

Mikasa stood up next to Eren, almost as if to defend him. “Levi, I told him my name already, it’s fine.”

The comment seemed to go ignored although Eren was sure Levi had still logged it into his brain. “We have a very clear mission we’re supposed to be on, not to mention I think I’ve made it pretty obvious to you that she needs to be an exception to your black and white rules.” Levi eventually got close enough that Eren could properly scan his features. The annoyance on his face was unwavering, but Eren swore he could also see a hint of a blush on his cheeks. “Also, you need to put a shirt on, fucking hell.”

Eren realized that although Mikasa had bandaged up his lower torso, his chest was still exposed. He didn’t know if it was because Levi was blushing about it that he suddenly became self-conscious of how exposed he was, but he quickly reached down to where his shirt had been placed earlier and started putting the garment on.

“As for you, Mikasa, why the hell did you egg him on by running? Why are you even in this town?”

“Uh… Can we take this conversation somewhere a little more… private?” Mikasa asked, eyeing Eren briefly before turning her attention back to Levi.

Levi gave Eren another once over. “You sit there and wait a minute,” he said, practically demanding it.

Eren listened and sat himself back down on the wooden chair he was sitting on before, clasping his hands together between his thighs again as he tried to distract himself with some thoughts. He could hear Levi and Mikasa talking quietly outside of the barn although he couldn’t make out what they were saying. Admittedly he was a little frustrated that he couldn’t get in on the conversation. But as Mikasa had stated to him just minutes ago, what happens between the two of them really wasn’t his business. He tried to respect that.

“No, you don’t get a say in anything I do!” Eren heard Mikasa’s voice raise to a shout and he had wondered what Levi said to have triggered such a reaction from her. “You take orders from that guy all you want, but I’m not letting that interfere in what I’m doing!”

“Mikasa! Just…” Eren heard Levi raise his voice and trail off, probably trying to deescalate the conversation. It took a lot of self-control on Eren’s part not to slowly make his way over to the opening of the barn where they stood so he could hear their conversation. He wondered if it was a normal thing for them to suddenly start arguing like this.

Eventually Eren turned his head to look at them and saw that they were a lot closer than before. Levi was leaning up and whispering in her ear, much like the first night Eren saw them together. He wondered what it was that he was whispering into her ear. Sweet nothings, perhaps? He watched as they lightly pressed their lips together and suddenly he felt very awkward and out of place. He shouldn’t be here, and he shouldn’t have interfered with what Mikasa was doing.

He got up without thinking much about it and walked toward the opening of the barn, ready to mount onto Clyde and leave them alone to do whatever they were working up toward.

“Oi, where are you going?” He heard Levi ask loudly. He looked over to him as he had his arms stretched out on his horse, ready to hop on.

“You guys look like you need some time alone,” Eren said as he got onto his horse. “Fuck it out or whatever it is you need to do I guess.” He wouldn’t admit the small pang of jealousy that worked its way through his chest. Why was he feeling it anyway? Who for?

“Mikasa is coming with us to get Historia,” Levi said as he mounted Black Dynamite. Eren didn’t object to the idea but he was certainly surprised. Perhaps she also had an issue with the Warrior Chief? Or perhaps Levi just wanted to utilize her skills. Eren wasn’t sure but he supposed he would find out one way or another. “How badly were you injured?” Levi asked.

“Um…”

“He just flew off his horse. It’s nothing major,” Mikasa said, leaving Eren with a blush cascading his face from the embarrassment of what happened.

“Tch.” Levi spat out before grabbing Eren’s hat from the Clyde’s saddle and placing it on top of Eren’s head, looking him square in the eyes. “You’re hopeless.”

Did Eren suddenly start feeling… butterflies?

* * *

 

It took about five more days for them to get to Orvud. It had been an interesting experience for Eren. And by interesting it was actually quite uncomfortable at times. For example, when he could hear Levi and Mikasa going at it in the hotel room next to his and the odd way it stirred him up, when they started arguing with each other about things Eren found really silly and miniscule, or the way they would embrace not long after they argued as if the argument never happened.

Their relationship seemed like a hot mess. Eren was sure if they just communicated better that would solve a lot of their problems. But what did he know about relationships? He’d never been in one, after all.

Were they even technically in one?

When they approached Orvud, Levi’s demeanor took a big shift, and he seemed very melancholy. “I fucking hate this place,” he murmured under his breath as they galloped in on their horses.

“What’s so bad about it?” Eren asked. He wasn’t met with an answer, however. Just a sharp stare from Levi that left the very obvious indication that it wasn’t a topic he wanted to discuss.

“I know it’s hard to be here, Levi. But just make sure you focus on the goal at hand, alright?” Mikasa advised in an effort to calm Levi down.

“I’m fine,” Levi insisted. “Let’s just get the Reiss girl and get out of here.”

“Erwin said they would probably be in a cave on the outskirts of town, right?” Eren asked, hoping to get past this uncomfortable feeling sinking in his chest. Was it because of Levi? Or was he nervous about jumping into his first big conflict that was going to clue him in on the man who killed his family?

“I know the cave,” Levi said, sounding very certain. “The quickest way to get there is a straight shot through town.”

He spurred his house in order to get through town faster and Eren and Mikasa followed suit. Eren couldn’t get his mind where it needed to be and kept wondering what it was that Levi abhorred so much about the place. It seemed like any other normal town he’d been in. It frustrated him that he really didn’t even know that much about Levi. More so because they have been traveling together for a couple weeks now. He shook his head, forcing himself to focus on the issue at hand. They were here to fight and save Historia Reiss. He had to focus on that.

It didn’t take long before they were at the mouth of a decently large cave. Eren looked around and couldn’t see anyone in the vicinity and he wondered if this was a setup, or if they’d already left.

“Oi!” He heard a woman’s voice shout from behind them, accompanied with the halting gallops of a horse. They all turned around to face the source of the noise. It was a tall, lanky woman with short brown hair and sun-kissed skin covered in freckles. Like Mikasa, she was also donning men’s clothing. “You guys are here to get Historia Reiss?” There was an urgency in her voice and a look of great concern on her face.

Levi quirked a brow at her before he started speaking. “You’ve been following us. What’s your business here?”

Now that Eren thought about it, Hange _had_ mentioned someone was following them when she gave them the information they needed to get here.

“She’s….” The woman trailed off and seemed to be hesitant to answer the question. “She’s my, uh…”

“Your name is Ymir, right?” Mikasa asked. “I recognize you from Ragako.”

“That’s right,” Ymir replied with a nod. Eren wondered how it was Mikasa knew her name when it seemed like they never spoke before. “Listen, Historia is just… really important to me… And I need to get her back.” She sounded desperate and Eren had to wonder just what their relationship was and whether this Ymir person was to actually be trusted. What if she was just a distraction so they could be ambushed?

“Our orders are to get the Reiss girl and bring her back home,” Levi said. “We don’t know you. We don’t know if we can trust you. Stay out of this.”

“She’s--!!” Ymir cut herself off before she could even finish and continued on with a different thought. “Rod Reiss isn’t a good man. He didn’t even take the precautions he needed to make sure she wasn’t even kidnapped. I know that he had something to do with it. And you’re just going to take her back to him!?”

“Yes. That was our order,” Levi said.

“Levi, maybe we should hear her out?” Mikasa intervened. “Ymir, what’s your relationship with Historia and what do you know?”

“She’s the child of a prostitute. She’s not Rod’s legitimate child,” Ymir started. “The only reason she’s living with him now is because her mom was killed. He doesn’t care about her, not at all.” Ymir seemed very emotional about the subject and Eren realized that she was avoiding the first part of the question.

“What’s your relationship? We’ve already asked once. Don’t dodge the question,” he finally said.

“She’s my…” Ymir trailed off, blushing.

“I think I get it,” Mikasa interrupted. “You two are lovers.”

“Th-that’s absurd!” Ymir shouted with a small crack in her voice, her cheeks becoming even redder.

“We’re not going to lynch you for it,” Mikasa said, a faint smile on her lips. “We can help you.” Eren was impressed by Mikasa’s acceptance of the situation. It was enough for him to start reconsidering how he viewed her before. People of the same sex being in a relationship was very much frowned upon, but Mikasa seemed to embrace it without a problem, as did he. After all, you can’t help who you love, right? Not that Eren knew much about it.

“That’s enough!” Levi finally shouted. He was visibly irritated, his eyebrow twitching above tightly closed lids and his lips turned into a frown. “We’re here, let’s just go in and see if the girl is there.” He turned to face Eren, “You stick with me. Mikasa,” he looked in her direction. “Make sure nothing happens to freckles.”

Well even if he _was_ irritated, Levi seemed to be on board with everything too. It made Eren’s heart warm up.

The four of them dismounted their horses and began to make their way into the cave. It was dark and damp at the opening, but there were visible torches further in. Eren was surprised at how deep the cave was and he decided it made sense for them to lure them to a place like this. There was literally no way to escape, so it was the perfect place for an ambush. He grabbed his pistol and cocked it, getting ready to shoot at any moment’s notice.

Not before too long, they finally started moving in on a figure tied to a chair. She was a cute blonde girl with fair skin, visibly small in stature. Eren was certain that this was Historia. “Who’s there?” She questioned, voice weak and dry.

“Historia!!” Ymir shouted as she began to run toward her lover.

“Ymir, wait!”

Before Eren even had a chance to think, he heard Mikasa fire off her gun that followed up with a loud thud on the ground and a man yelling out in pain, cursing Mikasa with everything he had.

Levi then started shooting in another direction and Eren heard more loud yelling.

Shit, they were being ambushed after all.

Eren felt a shot fly by him from behind and he turned around. Trying to stick with the technique Levi taught him, he kept both eyes open and aimed his gun in the middle, firing away at the man coming toward him.

He missed the man, but he did manage to disarm him with that shot.

“Ahhh!!” The man shouted as he moved into tackle Eren. He threw a punch which Eren was able to avoid, and Eren swung back. In the heat of everything he noticed the blond hair and blue eyes of the man and his expression wasn’t anger or determination, but one of terror. Despite that, Eren needed to defend himself, so he threw another punch, and then another, all while managing to dodge the man opposing him. Gunshots were still firing in the background and he hoped with everything that the others that were with him were holding their own just fine.

He was sure that they were, it was Levi and Mikasa after all. But what about Ymir?

“You can’t take her! We need that money!” The man shouted as he wildly kept swinging punches at Eren. Eren finally got fed up with it and managed to grab his pistol, firing a shot into the man’s leg to get him to stop.

“The fuck you think was going to happen when you steal an influential man’s daughter!?” He shouted as he got up and stood over him, noticing that the gunshots in the background had come to a halt. Levi and Mikasa must’ve taken care of everyone else in the cave. “You think someone crooked like Rod Reiss was just gonna pay up!? Idiot.” He aimed his gun point blank at the man’s head.

“Please… my little brother… I have to protect him…” The man murmured, holding tightly to the injury on his leg.

“Huh?”

“Eren, we’re done here!” Mikasa said from the back of the cave. He looked over to see that she and Ymir were untying Historia from the chair. The girl seemed weak, and Ymir had to help her stay on her feet.

“Shit, Historia… when was the last time you had anything to eat or drink?” Ymir asked, opting to lift her up and hold her bridal style rather than make her limp around.

“Ymir… I’m so glad you came…” Historia mumbled as she nuzzled her head into the other woman’s collarbone, wrapping her arms around her shoulders.

“Everything’s going to be alright,” Ymir said softly. She kissed Historia lightly on the forehead before turning her attention to Levi. “I need to get her medical attention right away,” Ymir said with urgency. “Please.”

“No one is stopping you,” Levi said, looking away from her toward the man still alive on the ground, pistol aimed and ready.

“You’re the Moonlight Rider, right?” Historia said weakly as she turned her attention to Mikasa.

“That’s right.”

“I never got to thank you for saving us before… And now you’re here again,” she said with a smile on her face. “Next time you’re in Ragako… drinks and a place to stay are on me, okay?”

“Sure,” Mikasa said, smiling softly back at her. “Now go see a doctor and get better.”

“Thank you… all of you.” Ymir said, showing her gratitude before making her way out of the cave.

Eren had to admit, it felt good to let them leave together, and it felt good to know he helped save a life today. But the feeling disappeared quickly as he realized they still had one left to deal with. Levi was already a step ahead of him.

“Tell us everything you know about the Warrior Chief, or I’m ending you right here and now.” 

“I don’t know that much,” the man said. “His gang of outlaws came into my town and just kind of took everything over. And they’re threatening my little brother… the only family I have left. If we don’t get this money… It’s all over for us.”

“Are you… Colt?” Eren asked, lowering his weapon. The man nodded. He suddenly felt pity for the guy, unsure of what their next move should be. Do they believe him or not? Do they let him go?

“What town do you guys live in?” Mikasa asked.

“Liberio,” Colt answered. Levi immediately lowered his weapon and the expression on his face softened.

“Liberio? That place is a shithole now, I heard,” he said with all the ungracefulness he always spoke in. “What is the Warrior Chief doing there?”

“Ze— The Warrior Chief… I don’t think is even at the top of the chain. He’s ruthless all the same, but he’s not the one threatening my family… I don’t think...” Colt explained. “He advised me to pursue the girl and hold her for ransom, because it was the only way he knew how to get money fast. He told me if I didn’t get the money, Falco would be killed.”

“You know his first name… what’s his last name?” Levi asked, trying to pry for anything that could be useful. But Colt simply shook his head. “Fine… How long is he going to be in Liberio?”

“He’s based there but he’s rarely ever there. The best way to avoid getting caught is to constantly be on the move.”

“Why does he want money from you?” Eren questioned.

“It’s not just us… Many families are being demanded to cough up the cash. It’s just a dirty way for whoever’s in charge to get rich quick on the backs of people who would otherwise be innocent.”

“Hmm,” Levi hummed contemplatively. “Eren, help him out and get him on your horse. Let’s get him to a doctor.”

“You sure?” Eren asked. Sure, he felt bad for the guy, but was he really to be trusted? He kidnapped an innocent girl for no reason. If he wanted to get away from the Warrior Chief, couldn’t he just run? Eren wasn’t sure he believed everything the man was saying. Good people don’t do dirty stuff like this.

“Stop hesitating and do it,” Levi said sternly.

“Fine,” Eren said, complying to Levi’s demand.

* * *

 

Eren found himself waiting outside of the building with Mikasa. He was standing against the wall, arms crossed with a pout on his face.

“Eren, you see not everything is good and bad now, right?” Mikasa asked, inching closer to him so she could keep her voice low.

“Kidnapping isn’t okay. I could have made that guy eat my lead,” he replied, looking away from her.

“You could have, but you didn’t,” Mikasa replied, taking her fingers to Eren’s chin and turning his head toward her. “Because you get it now.”

“I’m still coming after you whenever I don’t have to rely on Levi anymore,” Eren said stubbornly, shoving her hand away from his face. “I’m compromising because of him for now.”

The look on Mikasa’s face showed only blunt disbelief. “If you say so.” She sighed and walked away from Eren, making her way to her horse and mounting it.

“Wait, are you going somewhere?” Eren asked.

“Well, yeah… If I hang around too long I’m gonna have the law stalking me around,” she said. “Colt will be fine and Levi will be out soon. He’s used to this,” she said.

“What… used to you just up and leaving him without a word?” Eren was in disbelief. No wonder these two had issues.

“Give him a kiss for me, ‘kay?” She said with a wink before spurring her horse and taking off. And just like that, she was gone.

Eren waited outside for about fifteen more minutes before Levi finally walked out. “He’s going to stay here for the night. I think it’s best if we set up camp somewhere too or find a hotel.”

 _Give him a kiss for me_. The words rang in Eren’s head. He caught himself glancing at Levi’s lips and felt his cheeks grow hot like they did with Mikasa the other day. “Um, uh…” he sputtered out. “Yeah, we should… do that.” Shit… he wasn’t thinking about _Levi_ like that now, was he? That would be a huge problem.

Levi stared at him for a moment, eyebrow raised with suspicion. “I see Mikasa already left,” he said, choosing to ignore Eren’s absolute awkwardness. He let out a sigh.

“Yeah…” Eren trailed off, looking in the direction she disappeared in.

“Typical,” Levi said as he straddled his horse. He stared off for a minute before speaking again. “I’m beat. Let’s go.”

“Yeah, sure.” Eren said, getting on his horse and following Levi to the nearest hotel.


	6. Break

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi reflects on his past as he continues to struggle with opening up to Eren, learning that maybe it isn’t so bad to let the kid know more about him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just wanted to say thanks to everyone who is reading this. I'm really excited to keep moving forward with it... please expect more real soon! :D

The hotel in Orvud was almost completely booked for the night which forced Levi and Eren to share a room together, but it wasn’t a huge issue. Levi simply opted to sleep in the chair while he let Eren have the bed. And by sleep, really it was just Levi looking around the under-decorated room or watching Eren sleep peacefully, chest moving up and down gently. He couldn’t put his mind at ease enough to actively fall asleep when he was here. Although eventually his body got the better of him and forced a couple hours of slumber on him.

When he woke up, he felt the usual kink in his neck from sleeping on anything other than a bed. He stood up and cracked it, drawing out a displeased hiss from the other man in the room.

“Holy shit, doesn’t that hurt!?” Eren exclaimed, shifting to sit upright in the bed. His hair was disheveled, eyes still tired and he let out a lazy yawn. “You’re gonna break it.”

“No, it feels much better now,” Levi said. “Next time we get stuck in this situation,  _you_  can be the one sleeping in a chair.”

“We could have just shared the bed,” Eren suggested nonchalantly.

“No,” Levi said a little louder and more immediate than he intended.

“Alright, jeez, not like I would have started snuggling up on you or something,” Eren mumbled as he pushed the comforter off and started to stand up. Unlike Levi, who’d slept in his clothes, Eren had stripped down to his undergarment for the night. Levi unthinkingly admired Eren’s taut muscles and long legs as the other man walked across the room to grab his clothes. “So… what’s the plan for today?” Eren asked as he pulled up his pants and started fastening the buckle on his belt. 

Levi felt his cheeks become hot, so he looked away. “I have a stop that I want to make before we leave, but I’m not trying to stick around here for too long.” The thought of making that stop had Levi’s chest twisting up in knots and sinking into the ground. It’d been a couple years since he had visited Orvud, though, so he figured he at least owed her a visit.

“Do you want me to come with or find something else to do?” Eren asked as he buttoned his shirt from the bottom up.

 _You’re buttoning it the wrong way, idiot_ , Levi thought.

He mused on the question for a moment, watching Eren until he started tucking his shirt into his pants. “I think it’s fine if you come,” he eventually decided, figuring it wouldn’t do any harm to have Eren with him. “You’d just nag me about what I was doing later anyway,” he sighed as he walked over to where his duster and hat hung. He appreciated Eren’s enthusiasm, but he was really nosy and curious about what Levi did with his time, especially when it came to Mikasa. It made Levi wonder why he was so interested, but he didn’t put any thought into it. Maybe Eren had the hots for one of them, maybe he was just a nosey guy. At the end of the day, it didn’t really matter. Eren would leave his life after they put an end to Zeke, or whoever keeps causing all of these problems, and Levi would likely never hear from him again. Something which he expected Mikasa to do eventually as well – that is, if she didn’t get herself killed first because he wasn’t around to protect her.

The idea of ever losing her like that was like a sucker punch to the gut and he knew it was time to start shaking off his feelings of self-pity before it got worse. Not that it was going to help lighten his mood.

The two of them gathered their belongings, stopped for some breakfast and then headed out. Levi directed them to a spot just outside of town and the closer he got to it, the more he felt his guts twisting and stabbing inside of him.

“This is… a graveyard?” Eren asked, even though the answer was obvious. Before them lay rows of stone slabs sticking out of the dry dirt. Some of them had been maintained well, while others were starting to deteriorate and become unreadable. The only two people present at the moment was them, but Levi always felt like he could sense the presence of those buried beneath the ground just as well – even if they were nothing more the decomposed piles of rotting bones. He felt the presence of all these strangers, he felt the presence of  _her_. “Kuchel Ackerman?” Eren asked as they approached Levi’s target.

“Mom,” Levi said softly, looking down at the cracked gravestone in front of them. Part of him wanted to kick himself for not taking better care of the site, but the part of him that usually dominated his mind always told him it was best to just forget it completely if he can. To forget her.

Levi never believed in an afterlife or reincarnation or any of that stuff. He was a firm believer that when you died that was it, everything was lost on you and there was nothing after. His mom believed differently, and Levi remembered attending church with her on Sunday mornings where they always preached about heaven and hell. It always seemed too otherworldly and cheap to Levi, so he always questioned it. When she died, he was sure there was no god, because what god would allow a little boy to have his only family ripped away from him so cruelly?

Levi’s mind flashed back to the day he lost her. She had been sick for a while, just withering away in bed, losing any semblance of the beautiful face he remembered waking up to each morning as a child - the face that he still saw every time he looked in a mirror. He cursed the brothel that she had been working at for her illness, knowing full well that she had gotten it from one of her customers. He held her hand for most of the day, telling her it was going to be alright and that she would be going to heaven soon. Even if he didn’t believe it, he knew that thought gave her comfort. She had cried a lot that day, not for her own fate, but because she was worried about what would become of her child. Who would take care of him? Where would he go?

He made sure to spend that day assuring her that he would be alright, even if he never believed a word of that. Some days he still wasn’t sure if he really was alright, even if he managed to survive the rest of his youth after losing her. Perhaps it was why he still couldn’t just let Mikasa go. She had been the only solace in Levi’s life after he lost his mother, even if that came years later.

“Do you want me to step away?” Levi heard Eren’s voice and it called him back to the present moment. He looked over and saw the concerned look on Eren’s face, wondering what kind of face it was that he had been making since he read Kuchel’s name on that stone slab. “I can if you need a minute.”

“No, it’s fine,” Levi replied, glancing back down at the site. “I just felt I owed it to her to drop by, and now I have.” He was normally good at suppressing his emotions, but he started to feel the tears behind his eyes threaten to betray him. So, he turned away and began the walk back to his horse with Eren following slowly behind.

“Can I ask what she was like?”

Before he could mount Black Dynamite, Levi turned in the direction of Eren’s voice and saw the curious look on his face. He knew that Eren wanted to make a genuine connection with him. It was something that scared him, but he knew that if they were going to keep traveling together that he couldn’t just keep shrugging off everything Eren wanted to know about him like it didn’t matter. Levi convinced himself that he would only tell Eren about his mom in order to help cultivate the trust between them – that it had nothing to do with craving an interpersonal relationship with the kid as well.

“She was bright,” Levi said, not sure exactly where to start. “She was always smiling and singing, playing with me whenever she got a free moment. She cooked the most delicious food for me. Sometimes I can still smell it…” He started to trail off, the happy memories of her only making him feel worse. “She did the best she could with what she had and I always respected her for that, but unfortunately it took her from me in the end.”

“How old were you?” Eren asked, a look of sadness in his eyes.

“I was eleven.” Levi looked away from Eren and back to his horse, ready to drop the conversation. “But… that’s a boring story you don’t need to hear about,” he said with a grunt as he pressed his boot against the saddle and hopped onto his horse. “She just got sick, there wasn’t anything special about it.”

“So that’s why you don’t like coming here?” Eren asked as he mirrored Levi’s motions and hopped onto his own horse.

“Basically.”

“What about your dad?”

Levi winced. It was a topic he hated to bring up. It was never his fault and yet he always got so much shit about it. It hardened him in ways, but it never stopped stinging. He wasn’t even sure he wanted to share this fact with Eren at all, but he could hardly resist the sadly curious look on his face.

 _Filthy bastard child_.

_Won’t find work here. Get lost._

_If your mother hadn’t been a whore maybe you woulda been worth a damn._

The words rang in his mind as though he were still hearing them in that moment. It was another reason to hate Orvud, because people were unforgiving and that was his only reputation: the worthless bastard child of a brothel worker. Even after becoming a relatively accomplished adult, that’s all he ever was here and all he ever would be.

“Never knew him,” Levi decided to admit.

“That was probably hard,” Eren said as he gave Levi a gentle smile. “People aren’t so forgiving of that.”

“They aren’t, but I suppose that helped me in the long run,” Levi replied, trying to turn the negative connotation into a positive one. “I learned how to kick a lot of ass when I was younger.” He gave Eren a half-hearted smile, trying to lift the mood a little.

Eren let out a soft chuckle which reassured Levi. It was good to know that he didn’t have a problem with it. He appreciated how open minded the kid was.

“Can I ask how you met Mikasa?”

 _Always with the prying_ , Levi thought.

“You’re really interested in our relationship,” Levi said, quirking an eyebrow. “Why?” He spurred his horse, letting Eren know he was ready to start moving.

“I don’t know,” Eren said, pinching his eyebrows together. “I just want to know more about you, and she seems to be a big part of everything.”

Levi felt a little guilty at Eren’s admission. He seemed like he really was just genuinely curious to know Levi better and he had constantly been denying him that.

“I think that her story is better suited for her to tell if she wants to, but I met her when she was eleven. I was sixteen at the time,” Levi started. He looked over and saw that Eren’s expression had brightened up a little, like a puppy who’d finally been thrown a bone. It made him feel more at ease. “Her parents had a farm and they let me work on it in exchange for food. I was allowed to sleep in their barn. It was better than sleeping under the stars every night like I had been before. I grew quite a liking to them.”

“What did you do before you met them?”

“The only thing a kid in my situation could do. I learned how to use a gun, how to carry a knife, how to sneak, how to steal, how to kill if it was necessary.  The world out there is unforgiving,” Levi said, looking away from Eren as he described the darker part of his history. “Running into the Ackermans was like finding an oasis in a drought.”

“Mikasa’s last name is also Ackerman?” Eren asked, scrunching his face a bit in mild confusion.

“We’re not related,” Levi said, quick to shut down any connotation Eren might have gotten from that. “But without getting into the details too much, I took her with me after she lost her parents. Her Asian lineage wasn’t going to do her any favors in finding someone to care for her, and the thought of disgusting old men treating her like a piece of meat made me sick to my stomach. So, we just continued to survive with each other after that.”

“I see,” Eren said. The look on his face screamed to Levi that he wanted to know more, but it seemed that he started to learn when it was time to stop asking questions because he didn’t push any further about the topic. Levi was relieved he didn’t have to reveal any more for the time being. Talking about his past always exhausted him. Perhaps Eren was starting to notice that.

They fell into silence for a while after that.

* * *

 

Levi had decided to take the quickest route to Mitras from Orvud. Unfortunately, the result was trudging through what seemed like endless desert and very sporadically placed small towns which offered no housing and little respite. Today’s weather was particularly hot, and Levi was uncomfortable, tired, and really desired to bathe and wash his clothes. Everything around him stunk, and it made his skin crawl.

“I think that there is a river just North of here, we could go there?” Eren suggested after he heard Levi grumbling about everything under his breath. “I’ve ridden through here before.”

Levi absolutely hated the idea of cleaning himself in fish water knowing well water exists, but he supposed it was better than nothing. His stomach was also growling. “Yeah, we could get some fish to eat too.”

Sure enough, Eren was right, and Levi was relieved to see the body of water. The two of them tied up their horses on a nearby tree and made their way down to the riverbank. Eren seemed a little apprehensive about stripping down in front of Levi, so he looked away to try and make him feel less uncomfortable about it.  Levi proceeded to strip down as well, hanging his clothes neatly on a rock nearby. He took a hold of his knife, ready to try and snatch up any fish that might come by him.

Luckily the river ran relatively deep, and Levi was able to get to water that went up about mid chest. It offered enough of a feeling of privacy, and Eren seemed to relax a little more when he realized his bare ass wasn’t out there for Levi to see.  The water was cool to the touch, offering some much-needed relief during such a hot day.

“So, Eren,” Levi called out, trying to grab the other man’s attention. Eren turned to face him, hands gripping at the side of his arms as though he were still trying to adjust to the coldness of the water. “You bug me like hell about my life, tell me about you. Do you have a woman back home or anything?” He figured he knew the answer, but it was just silly small talk anyway, so it didn’t matter.

“No, I’ve never been with anyone,” Eren said, blushing shyly. Levi found it endearing. “My dad was a doctor… I was hoping to follow in his footsteps someday… I don’t know where I’m supposed to begin.”

“You’re shit at small talk,” Levi deadpanned. “Do you have any good friends back home?”

“Armin,” Eren answered more confidently. “I’ve known him since we were eight. He’s an inventor now.”

“When’s the last time you visited him?”

“It’s been a few months,” Eren answered. “I reckon I’m due for a visit soon.”

“We should go see him sometime then,” Levi offered.

He dipped his head back to wet down his hair. The water felt grimy against his scalp and while this was still better than nothing, he wouldn’t hesitate to take his opportunity for a hot bath the instant they got into a larger town with a hotel. He splashed water up to his shoulders to get some coverage in that area and continued to wipe himself down. He noticed Eren doing the same thing nearby.

What surprised him was when he suddenly felt a splash on his face. It was cold and sudden and took him completely by surprise. He looked over at Eren, annoyed. But his annoyance wore off instantly when he saw the ornery smile on Eren’s face.

“You little shit, I have a knife, you know,” Levi said, pointing out the weapon in his hand.

“Ah, so you’re defenseless then,” Eren chuckled. “Because we both know you’re not gonna stab me with that.” He splashed Levi again.

“Alright, you asked for it,” Levi replied playfully, tossing his knife back onto the dry land. He hit the water hard and watched as it sprayed all over Eren’s face, wetting the hair that was still dry on his head before. Eren moved in closer, slamming his hand down harder into the water as if to try and make a larger splash than Levi. Levi took that as a competitive challenge, and the two of them continued to exchange splashes at each other for a short while, each time trying to outdo the other. After a few minutes, Levi finally went in for a decisive blow and knocked Eren over into the shallower water, causing Eren to fall flat on his ass.

“Dammit, Levi,” Eren said, rubbing at his lower back. “I concede, alright?” Levi walked over toward Eren, paying no mind to the fact that he was still butt naked and now exposed, and extended his hand to help the other up. Eren coyly looked away from Levi as he offered his help and took his hand as a support to get back up.

The look on Eren’s face when he realized he was standing exposed in front of Levi was priceless. Red cheeks, wide eyes, open mouth. The quickness in his movements as he scurried to get his undergarments back on was comical and Levi couldn’t help but let out a shallow chuckle at the motion.

He walked back up to the riverbank to retrieve his knife so he could attempt to catch a couple fish for them to eat. Eren spent the rest of the time dressing himself up again and tending to the horses.

Nightfall came soon, and the two of them set up camp at the spot by the river. Levi showed Eren how to gut a fish – he kept wondering how Eren ever survived before they met – and the two of them cooked the fish over a fire and ate. Eren commented that it was delicious, although Levi felt the flavor left something to be desired. But it was better than going hungry.

They settled down by their horses to fall asleep for the night. Despite Eren’s layers of clothing, Levi could tell that he was shivering. The desert was always colder than expected at night, and while it never bothered Levi much anymore, he could tell it still bothered Eren.

“Hey, kid,” Levi said, trying to get Eren’s attention. Eren looked over to him, the need for sleep screaming from his eyes. “We’ll stay warmer if we huddle.”

Eren just shook his head. “No, it’s okay…”

Levi rolled his eyes. It had been just that morning that Eren so casually mentioned sleeping together in the same bed, yet now he was being shy about getting close? “You’re shivering, get the fuck over here, or I’m coming over there.”

“No, really, I’m fine,” Eren insisted.

Levi had to respect that, even if it felt like Eren was being a little bullheaded. It wasn’t like he  _wanted_  huddle so closely to Eren, it just seemed like the most logical option. But if Eren wanted his space, Levi wouldn’t intrude on that. Instead, he took off his duster, walked over to Eren and threw it on over him. “At least take this then,” he said.

“What about you?” Eren asked, looking up at him.

“The cold doesn’t bother me,” Levi answered, settling back down against his horse. “Get some sleep.”

Eren snuggled into the extra layer they Levi threw on him and replied, “Yeah, you too… Thanks, Levi.”


	7. Interrogation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi and Eren report back to Erwin and get orders for their next move. Mikasa, however, is already two steps ahead of them and learns a heartbreaking truth.

“You didn’t bring her back with you?” Erwin sat at the desk in his office, arms crossed over the wooden surface as he looked directly into Levi’s eyes. The curtains in his office were still open as dusk started to settle in the sky, painting the walls with a pinkish hue. 

“It couldn’t be helped,” Levi replied, folding his arms across his chest and leaning back into his chair. “She was in dire need of medical attention and her little girlfriend trailed us all the way to Orvud to get her back. I wasn’t about to hang out there for a week just to bring her back home to someone who didn’t bother to take care of her in the first place.”

“Ymir was really worried about her, too” Eren added, hoping that his input wasn’t too unwarranted. Erwin didn’t look angry, though. More like inconvenienced.

“That freckled girl…” He said, trailing off and looking out the window. “Rod won’t be happy to hear this.”

“Well, the bastard should have been looking out for his daughter to begin with,” Eren said, brows pinching together as he expressed his dislike for the man simply through the tone of his voice. “He just let her get kidnapped like it didn’t matter.”

“He was using her as bait,” Erwin said, turning his attention now to Eren. “I think he was hoping that Levi or someone else would wipe out some of Zeke’s underlings so he could be given the upper hand in whatever squabble it is they’re currently having.”

“Tch,” Levi stood up from his chair with a clear look of disgust on his face. “I’m a bounty hunter, not a hitman.  Next time Rod Reiss pulls this shit, you get someone else to do it. Eren,” he said as he looked down to meet Eren’s eyes. “Let’s go. I need a long, hot bath after this shit.”

Eren found himself admiring the man for a moment. Although perhaps a bit morally grey, he was still someone who held onto his principles and Eren respected that. He hoped that he would be like him as he got older and more experienced. At the very least, it was validating to know Levi was as pissed off about Rod Reiss using his daughter like a tool as he was.

He stood up and followed behind Levi as they made their way toward the exit.

“Levi,” Erwin said, stopping the two of them as they approached the door. “One more thing before you guys go. There was a train robbery just outside of Stohess yesterday. I was hoping you would look into it.”

“How bad was the damage?” Levi asked, turning his attention back to man in the center of the room.

“Five dead, including the conductor. The train is still there until they can get another conductor to move it.”

“I see,” Levi said. “Any leads?”

“No one saw the robbery happen, but I’ve been tipped off to two men. One is stocky, blond, goes by Reiner. The other is tall and lanky, black hair. If I recall correctly, his name was Bertolt,” Erwin said, and the familiarity of those names instantly rang bells in Eren’s head. The two he met the other day. “I believe there were others involved, but that’s all I have for now.”

“I’ll let you know what I find out,” Levi said before heading out the door with Eren following closely behind.

“Levi, those two guys are the ones I met other day when we were heading to Orvud,” Eren said as they started their walk through the town. “At the saloon that night.”

“I know,” Levi said, not stopping to give Eren his full attention. “And I’ve seen them somewhere before.” They continued to walk forward toward the nearest hotel where Eren assumed they would be staying for the night.

“Don’t you have a house around here or anything?” Eren asked. “This seems to be the base of operations, no? At your age I can’t imagine you don’t at least have somewhere to live.”

“I have a house back in Ehrmich,” Levi said. “Not that it’s your business.”

“Can’t we stay there sometime?” Eren asked.

“Yeah,” Levi replied. “If we ever get to go through Ehrmich for anything. Which isn’t very likely right now.”

It was true, they’d practically been on the move nonstop since he decided to bring Eren along with him. Not that Eren minded, because that was true for him before he even met with Levi. But still, a breather would have been nice for a change. They just finished a rescue mission and now they have to investigate a train robbery, and then what? Sure, he wanted to get his hands on Zeke as soon as possible, but the trail wasn’t too hot right now and Eren just wanted a day or two to rest.

Maybe part of him was also curious what kind of a house Levi keeps.

“Hey,” Levi said. Before Eren could realize the man had stopped walking he ran straight into him, almost knocking the two of them over.

“Shit, sorry…”

“It’s fine. Listen, I need to take care of a few things and I’m desperate for a real bath,” Levi said, turning to face the hotel they’d stayed in before. “Go get us a couple rooms and I’ll catch up with you later, okay?”

“Are you expecting Mikasa or…?”

“Like I know where the hell she ran off to this time,” Levi said, a hint of snark seeping through his tone. “Our worlds don’t revolve around each other.”

 _Could have fooled me_ , Eren thought. He agreed to part with Levi and get them a couple of rooms for the night. Once he did that he settled down in the saloon portion of the hotel and got himself some water, sitting at the bar and wondering what the next move would be, wondering what it was Levi was out doing.

He noticed someone sit down next to him, a smaller woman with blonde hair tied into a messy bun. He recognized her from somewhere. She looked over at him and noticed that he was gawking, her icy-blue eyes boring into him, totally unamused.

“Can I help you?”

“Shit! I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to…” Eren said, blushing as he rubbed his hand against the back of his head. “You just surprised me.”

“You look familiar,” the woman said. “You’re the one who started rampaging after the Moonlight Rider the other day, aren’t you?”

Eren blushed even harder, feeling totally embarrassed at his behavior back then. Even more so, knowing better who Mikasa is and how ridiculous he’d been toward her. “Ah… that…" Now that he remembered the situation, he recalled that the woman’s name is Annie, and she is a traveling companion of Reiner and Bertolt. Eren chose to suppress his suspicions and carry on as though nothing was off about the situation.

“Hey, it got her off my back. So, thanks, I guess,” Annie said, flagging the bartender down for a drink.

“What was that all about anyway? You two do it often, the way someone I was talking to made it sound.”

“Sizing each other up,” Annie said.

“Girls do that?” Eren asked, never having seen something like that before in his life.

“Why does that seem so weird to you?” Annie asked, turning her head to give him full attention after ordering a water. “Because you only see men do it?”

Eren shrugged, a silent acknowledgement that was she said was right. It was true, he’d never seen two women about to have a duel in the middle of town. It was totally out of the ordinary.

“I really can’t stand her,” Annie admitted before chugging down her water.

“I wouldn’t have guessed,” Eren chuckled before taking a sip of his own drink. “So… You’re a traveling companion of Reiner and Bertolt? I met them the other day when I saw you and Moonlight facing each other down, and they said your name was Annie?”

Annie turned her attention back to Eren, staying silent for a moment before taking in a breath. “I’m not their biggest fan, but we come from the same hometown, so I get stuck with them a lot while running errands. They’re buffoons though.”

“I see,” Eren said. “Sorry if this is abrupt, but I’m working with a bounty hunter who’s trying to track down a serious outlaw. Have you heard of the Warrior Chief?”

He wasn’t sure what the look in Annie’s eyes meant. They glimmered and got darker at the same time, like she had some kind of twisted, conflicting feeling stirring inside. Of course, Eren knew that she had to know something if she was traveling with people suspected to have ties to the famous outlaw. But she was visibly much more uncomfortable than she was a minute ago.

“I’m familiar with his reputation,” Annie said. She chugged the rest of her drink quickly and set the mug down rather harshly on the counter. “And I’d rather avoid him or anything to do with him if I can. Good day.” She saw herself out of the saloon so quickly it almost left Eren with whiplash the way he turned toward her as she headed out. Definitely suspicious, Eren thought.

* * *

 

The heat of the desert sun blazed down on Mikasa as she made chase with her horse. She was determined not to let the two men in front of her get away and she spurred her horse, urging it to go just a little faster. Whipping out her pistol, she took aim and fired a warning shot between the two men’s heads.

“Stop now!” She shouted. “Next time I’m not missing!”

Of course, they did not heed her warning and kept galloping ahead. She fired another shot, grazing the blond-haired man along the cheek.

“Just stop already!” The brunet one yelled before the two of them reluctantly heeled their horses. Mikasa caught up with them, gun still pointing forward as she guided her horse in front of them.

“You guys know something about the train robbery in Stohess? All my clues are pointing to you two.” She took no time in getting down to business, digging into the only questions she wanted answers to.

“If we were, what are you going to do about it?” The blond asked.

“What are your names?” Mikasa answered the question with her own.

“I’m Marcel,” the brunet said. “And this is Porco.”

“Porco?” Mikasa asked, awestruck at the ridiculous name.

“Galliard,” Porco insisted, giving Marcel a glare.

“It’s weird to call you our last name,” Marcel groaned.

“You’re brothers?” Mikasa asked, emphasizing to them that she still had her gun cocked and ready. She wasn’t surprised that they were related - they practically looked like twins. But this wasn’t the time to think about such things. “Anyway, you guys are responsible for the train robbery, no?” The two of them looked at each other knowingly and it was all Mikasa needed before either of them even had a chance to speak. “I don’t care about the money, just tell me what you know about Zeke.”

“Zeke?”

“Yeah, you know. Warrior Chief. Big-time outlaw. All signs point to that robbery being to his benefit. Just answer the damn question,” Mikasa said before firing another warning shot to the side. “I’m losing my patience with all of this.”

“Alright!” Porco yelled out, urging his horse to move a bit more to the side and away from firing range, clearly unsettled by Mikasa’s rash behavior. “I don’t know what your business is with him. What do you want!?”

“My parents are dead because of him,” Mikasa said, hand shaking around her pistol. “I need to know where he is, or where the person responsible for killing them in cold blood is per his order.”

“Listen,” Marcel said calmly. “Whatever you think it is you know, I can tell you it’s not going to stop at the Warrior Chief.”

Mikasa shook her head, stomach dropping as she was almost ready to pull her trigger again. She couldn’t take any more of this. She finally had a solid lead, and she wanted answers right now. “The hell is that supposed to mean?”

“Our Warrior Chief gets a lot of credit for things he didn’t do,” Marcel said. “He lets the rumors happen if it keeps people away.”

“Okay?” Mikasa asked, finding the commentary entirely too unhelpful.

“He doesn’t just go around killing random families,” Marcel continued. “I’m sorry about your loss, but whoever killed your parents likely has no connection to the Warrior Chief at all.”

“That’s not true, you’re lying!” Mikasa snapped, pointing the gun straight between Marcel’s eyes. “If you don’t give me the truth, your skull is getting a taste of my bullet.” Her breathing was erratic, and she realized that she was probably acting irrationally, but she was closer than she’d ever been to the truth and she couldn’t bear to let this opportunity escape her. Not now. Not when it was drawing in close to yet another year of being without them. “It’s been seven years… I deserve answers.”

“You’re the Moonlight Rider, right?” Porco asked, diverting Mikasa’s attention from his brother.

“What of it?”

“There’s a man who goes by the name of Darius Zackley. He’s a deputy in Sina, and probably the most crooked of them all. You should see if barking up that tree will get you the answers that you want,” he explained calmly. Mikasa was familiar with the name, but as far as she knew the man had a clean record. There was never a reason to suspect him of wrongdoings. He was a widely respected man in the southern part of the plains.

“You guys are just trying to protect your top dog,” Mikasa said, voice more of a lull now than the heated yelling she was doing before. “Why should I believe anything you say?”

“If you weren’t going to believe anything we say, why did you bother trying to interrogate us at all?” Porco asked. “What’s the logic?”

She lowered her gun, realizing that she was acting rashly and decided maybe it was best to let them go. “Fine, I get it. But can I ask why you suspect Darius Zackley before I let you go?”

“You’re Asian,” Marcel pointed out. “Zackley benefits greatly from the trade.”

Mikasa practically dropped her pistol at the realization, her body feeling cold and her heart suddenly empty. She was trembling, unsure if it was because of the pain or the anger. So that was it? Her heritage is the reason she lost her parents. The way this stupid world worked, the way it treated people like her… It was wrong.

“I’m sorry,” Marcel said sincerely before the two of them turned and galloped off.

* * *

 

Mikasa found her way to the train that had been robbed and camped there for the night. She kept herself wrapped tightly in her blanket, fighting away the cold of the desert night and trying to fight away the cold inside of herself. She hadn’t felt this empty since the night that her house was assaulted. She wished that she had Levi there with her to give her the comfort that she needed in these moments. Sometimes she regretted not staying by his side, and this night was one of those times.

Once dawn broke the sky, she found herself sitting on one of the small stairways of the train, head against the palm of her hand while she looked off into the distance. She didn’t feel much and she wasn’t sure that she wanted to. Sometimes it was best just to stay numb from the world for a while. She still hadn’t cried, and part of her preferred it that way.

She hadn’t even noticed the pair of horses that galloped toward her or the two people riding them. But suddenly she heard a voice that was comfortingly familiar.

“Mikasa?”

She looked down from her perch on the stairs and her eyes lit up. Levi and Eren were here, and she’d never been happier to see them.  

“Have you seen anyone suspicious around here?” Eren asked.

“Guys…” Mikasa breathed out quietly.

“Mikasa, what’s wrong?” Levi asked, instantly noticing that she wasn’t quite herself.

“Levi…” Without thinking she hopped off from stairs and instantly wrapped her arms around him. He was warm and comforting and he smelled nice, and Mikasa was so thankful that he showed up. She felt him wrap strong arms around her and she started trembling again, tears finally forming in her eyes and gliding down her cheeks.

“Shhh…” Levi said as he ran gentle fingers through her hair. “It’s okay. I’m here now.”

“It wasn’t him, Levi,” she sobbed into the crook of his neck. “He’s not the one who killed them…”

Levi pushed her back gently and lifted her chin up with his hand, making eye contact with her. She could barely see him through the tears still flooding her eyes. “What are you talking about?” He asked.

“It wasn’t Zeke.”

“How do you know that? Who told you that? Who else could it have been?” Eren asked, propping a supportive hand onto her shoulder.

Mikasa let out a small snort. “You’re not that great at comforting people, are you?” She turned to face him and gave him a soft smile. “I found the train robbers.” She instantly felt herself frowning again, however, before explaining what she learned from the two she cornered earlier.

“Zackley?” Levi asked, expression incredulous. “But he doesn’t have a speck of dirt on him. They have to be lying.” 

“What exactly happened to your parents, Mikasa?” Eren asked. Mikasa was legitimately surprised that Levi hadn’t spilled the story to him, but she was also grateful that he still respected her privacy.

They decided to go inside of the train to talk, staying away from any possibly threatening eyes. They sat down in one of the train booths. Levi sat next to Mikasa, an arm resting on her thigh, and Eren sat across from them.

“When I was twelve, three robbers broke into our home during dinner. Levi was out in the barn, he said he wasn’t hungry that night.  We were having a peaceful time when they knocked. My dad answered the door and was stabbed in the stomach, dying almost instantly. My mom told me to run and tried to fight them off. I was scared stiff, though. I couldn’t move. I couldn’t understand what just happened to my dad, and I wasn’t sure what would happen if my mom couldn’t make the bad guys go away. Levi finally came in through the back door and he grabbed me, forcing me to run away from the scene. We ran and ran, hiding in a nearby bush as we saw my house start to go aflame.” She placed her hand on top of Levi’s and gave it a gentle squeeze. “I was expecting a little brother or sister. I was so excited to meet them.”

“I’m sorry,” Eren said.

“Don’t be,” Mikasa replied, shaking her head gently.  “After that—”

Suddenly the window next to their seat cracked, accompanied with the sound of a gunshot. A second bullet didn’t take it’s time in breaking through the glass and hitting Eren in square in the shoulder.

“Shit!” Levi shouted as he shoved Mikasa to the floor, pulling Eren down with them after she was secured. She looked over to Eren who was clutching at his shoulder, blood oozing out slowly between his fingers. “Fuck… Mikasa, get him out of here, I’ll deal with this!”

“But—” Mikasa started to protest.

“I said go!”

She watched as Levi cocked his pistol and headed into the direction of the door. Without hesitation she grabbed Eren’s arm, pulled him up and hoisted it around her shoulder. The two of them stumbled through the back door and made their way to the car next door. She looked back briefly to see Levi firing off shots at the bandits that started raiding the abandoned train. She didn’t want to leave him behind, but she knew that he could handle himself and trusted him to do just that.

She looked out of the window of the car and noticed there was a lot of them waiting outside.

“Mikasa, you need to go help him,” Eren insisted. “It’s just my shoulder, I’m not going to die.”

Mikasa shook her head. As much as she wanted to help Levi, Eren was wounded badly and she needed to get him out of there in case they became overwhelmed. Levi’s gotten out of worse pinches than this before. “We’re leaving.”

“No, we can’t just leave him!” Eren shouted.

“He knows what he’s doing, Eren!” Mikasa said, hardly sounding reassuring at all as she was practically dragging him out the door. She noticed the troubled look on his face and felt there was something familiar in the panic washing over his eyes. He cared about Levi, and it was obvious to her now more than ever. She looked around to find any kind of shelter, knowing that getting to their horses would be an impossibility right now. Gunshots echoed from inside the train, and Mikasa was relieved to hear that none of the yelps or hollers belonged to Levi.

She looked to the north and saw a cluster of rocks, deciding they could hind behind there. But much to her surprise, as the closed in, she saw an old abandoned cabin just east of the rocks.  “Let’s go there,” she said, hoping there would be no more surprises inside… and hopefully some first aid.  Eren was getting harder to drag, and Mikasa could tell that he was starting to grow tired from the blood loss.

She cracked the door carefully, scouting the area for any people before finally propping it open all the way. “I think we’ll be safe here,” she said as she dragged him inside. She pulled him through the cabin until she was able to get him inside of the bedroom, feeling fortunate that there was still a bed there. She searched around for any bandages or medicines but wasn’t able to find anything. She opted to rip off the bottom of her dress as a makeshift bandage.

She felt herself relax a bit more as she heard the noise outside come to a stop. She pulled Eren’s shirt over his head and wrapped the fabric that she tore off around his shoulder to stop the bleeding. He winced when she tightened the end.

“I’m sorry, I’m not very gentle,” she said, looking up at him apologetically. “But this should help. How are you feeling?”

“A little dizzy, and this hurts like a bitch, but I’m okay.”

“The gunshots have stopped. I think Levi managed to get everyone. Won’t stop him from scouting for a while though.”

Eren chuckled. “Sounds like him. Always thorough about everything.”

“He’s protective,” Mikasa said.

“You seem to be the same way,” Eren replied, giving her a faint smile. “I wouldn’t mind hearing more of your story.”

She sighed and returned his smile, fiddling with the fabric of her dress. “I was eleven when Levi showed up at my house. My dad offered him a place to stay in return for help on the farm. He joked about us having the same last name, saying it was destiny that he stumbled upon him.

“After they died, I clung to those words, no matter if they were meant to be a joke. Levi protected me. He taught me how to shoot, how to throw a punch, how to wield a knife. Anything I needed to know to survive. And surviving is all we did for a while. But eventually surviving turned into something else. People started to piss us off more, and we started to fight back against the injustices that we saw. I couldn’t stand to see people like me being shipped across the land to become toys for nasty old men to use. Levi couldn’t stand to see the more unfortunate battered and abused because of their circumstances. We became a pair of vigilantes together – wanted criminals, even though what we were doing was right.”

“It’s still breaking the law,” Eren pointed out. But Mikasa could feel no hatred or anger in his voice. It was just a fact, something he wanted to remind her of.

“Erwin saw what we could do and offered to clear our names in exchange for our skills. Levi had been growing tired of running from the law and took him up on his offer. But I didn’t want the same thing. I didn’t mind hiding from the law. The law was part of the problem. It still is.” She took a deep breath as her mind flashed to her new knowledge about Darius Zackley. “Besides, as long as Levi is protected, I am too. He wouldn’t agree to Erwin’s conditions without it.”

“You guys argue a lot… Don’t you think that changing your mind about this vigilante business would help patch up that rift a bit?” Eren asked. Mikasa hardly took him for someone who knew anything about romance or relationships, but she did understand that he had a valid point.

“No doubt that would help a lot. We mostly argue because of my stubbornness,” she chuckled. “But he respects that I stick with my own values and eventually drops it.” She met his eyes and noticed that there was a softness to them, something warm and welcoming. She was familiar with the feeling, as Levi looked at her like that every time they saw each other again. It was comforting in a dangerous way. She wondered if he also looked at Levi this way. If it was just the way he looked at people he was fond of, or if it meant something more. “So, what’s your story?” She asked, ready to get the topic off of her.

“Kind of similar to yours, except that I didn’t have someone to help bail me out of a rough patch,” he said. His voice was light and playful and Mikasa understood he didn’t mean to be malicious with his words. “My parents were also murdered in front of me, and my home destroyed.”

“I see,” she said, resting her hand on Eren’s forearm. “We’re pretty alike then, huh?”

Eren shrugged, and he was still looking at her with that warmness in his eyes. The gaze was so warm that it started to burn her cheeks, and before she could even realize what she was doing, she found herself trying to get closer to them.

And closer… _and closer_ …

As if she had gotten too close and didn’t want to be seen anymore, she felt her eyes flutter shut, anticipating what was to come next as she felt her lips start to brush against his and—

She pulled back the instant she heard the front door unlatch. “Shit… what the hell am I…?” She met Eren’s eyes for just a moment, noting the look of sudden disappointment. “Sorry that was… I shouldn’t have.”

She bounced up out of the chair she was sitting in and headed out the room to greet Levi in the living area. “You alright?” She asked, looking him over to make sure there was no bleeding or other signs of injury.

“Yeah. They were just a bunch of fucking small fry,” Levi said as he closed the door behind him. “How’s Eren? Your cheeks are really red, you okay?”

“Yeah, everything is fine,” Mikasa said, possibly blushing worse when she realized that she had just tried to kiss the guy. “We should probably stay here for the night so he can get some rest.”

Levi looked her over and she knew he could tell something was amiss. “Yeah, good idea.” He kissed her softly on the lips as he ran his fingers through the strands of her hair. He pulled back and looked her in the eyes. Like Eren, Levi’s eyes were warm and they were loving. But she also saw a hint of some kind of understanding about something. “You too, huh?”

She stared back at him, completely confused as to what he meant.

“…Huh?”


End file.
